The Aporia · Nutty professor who once threatened Post reporter with machete runs ‘speakeasy’ tattoo parlor

Nutty professor who once threatened Post reporter with machete runs ‘speakeasy’ tattoo parlor — inking communist-inspired art

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Spector, D. (2026, September 19). Nutty professor who once threatened Post reporter with machete runs ‘speakeasy’ tattoo parlor — inking communist-inspired art. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/09/19/us-news/shellyne-rodriguez-runs-speakeasy-tattoo-parlor/

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Quick Summary

Shellyne Rodriguez, 46, an ex-CUNY professor fired in 2023 after threatening a reporter with a machete, now runs a clandestine tattoo parlor called Comrade Comadre. The business offers radical communist-themed tattoos and operates as both a speakeasy and community library. Notable designs include Soviet-inspired imagery and references to Palestinian resistance. Rodriguez has also given herself tattoos symbolizing steadfastness and featuring Antonio Gramsci. She was awarded $407,000 by the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs for a controversial public art installation in The Bronx.

Written by AI on 2026-09-19, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

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Story summary

Shellyne Rodriguez, a former Hunter College professor who was fired in 2023 after threatening a New York Post reporter with a machete, now runs a "speakeasy tattoo parlor" called Comrade Comadre. The establishment focuses on communist-inspired body art and features designs such as red stars and sickles reminiscent of the Soviet flag. Customers include prominent figures like Ruth Wilson Gilmore, a 76-year-old CUNY graduate school professor who advocates for prison abolition, who received a tattoo from Rodriguez. Manhattan Institute analyst Stu Smith criticized CUNY for its radicalism, citing Rodriguez and Gilmore's former affiliation with the institution. Rodriguez reportedly earned $81,400 for constructing the Marxist-themed project, which she conceptualized amid widespread questioning of foundational American institutions.

Written for “Troubled Professor's Tattoo Parlor Opens” on 2026-11-04, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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66/100

New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

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articles that frame the event the way this one does

Who wrote this

David Spector

26 article(s) here · 0 carrying a prediction

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Also by David Spector

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Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

All 26 articles by David Spector →

Claims (16 extracted, 0 hedged)

The deranged ex-CUNY professor who once held a machete to a Post reporter’s neck is now running a “speakeasy tattoo parlor” where she inks communist-inspired body art on her radical customers. asserted

she → hold → customers

Shellyne Rodriguez, 46, who was fired from Hunter College in 2023 shortly after being filmed menacing Post reporter Reuven Fenton with a machete and threatening to “chop him up,” has found a new calling as a tattoo artist. asserted

who → fire → artist

The Instagram for the business, called Comrade Comadre, bills it as a “speakeasy tattoo parlor and community library.” asserted

Instagram → call → parlor

The account is filled with images of radical tattoo designs — including Soviet-inspired red star and sickle. asserted

account → fill → star

Photos show Rodriguez inking the quarter-sized red five pointed star on the right arm of CUNY graduate school Professor Ruth Wilson Gilmore, 76, who advocates for abolition of prisons. asserted

who → show → prisons

Her husband Craig, 58, a community organizer, got a black and gray sickle tattoo right above his wrist resembling the one on the former Soviet flag. . asserted

husband → get → flag

Manhattan Institute investigative analyst Stu Smith said it was no surprise that both Rodriguez and Wilson taught at CUNY. asserted

Rodriguez → say → CUNY

“CUNY has an unchecked level of radicalism there, there’s so many issues with CUNY it makes me sad that what should be a gem of New York City is tarnished by these activist professors, it’s really sad,” Smith said. asserted

Smith → have → professors

Rodriguez, 48, posted tattoos she gave herself, including the Arabic word “sumud” which means steadfastness and is also the name of the Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood-linked Gaza flotilla. asserted

which → post → flotilla

She also inked a black and white headshot of Italian communist theorist Antonoio Gramsci on a man’s left arm. asserted

She → ink → arm

Another customer received a black and white section of barbed wire on his right arm just below his elbow symbolizing “Palestinian land defense.” asserted

customer → receive → defense

She also posts selections from her library, including a book entitled “In Defense of Looting” by Vicky Osterwell. asserted

She → post → Osterwell

Other books she offers are “The Radical Politics Coloring Book” and “Anarchy Explained to Children.” asserted

she → offer → Children

Rodriguez’s name did not appear on any city database stating she was licensed, and the health department said TK. asserted

. → appear → database

She was awarded $407,000 by the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs to erect a 23-foot-tall brick, steel and terracotta statue adorned with Black Power fists in The Bronx, which was unveiled in November 2025. asserted

which → award → November

The nutty professor, who took home $81,400 for constructing the Marxist monstrosity, said she conceived of the work during a time when “the violent foundations of the United States was collectively being called into question.” asserted

foundations → take → question

Nutty professor who once threatened Post reporter with machete runs ‘speakeasy’ tattoo parlor — inking communist-inspired art

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Claims (16 extracted, 0 hedged)