New York Teacher Placed on Leave Over Social Media Post Wishing Harm on Trump Supporters
“America is no longer the land of the free — we are prisoners of the government. Only a matter of time before they come for all women.”
Some people should really avoid social media. It just gets them into trouble.
The College Fix reports:
Teacher wishes all Trump supporters choke and ‘suffer long’; gets placed on leave
A science teacher in Long Island, New York has been placed on leave after posting on social media that she wished “all Trump supporters” would choke the next time they have a drink and “slowly wither away.”
Pamila Pahuja of R.C. Murphy Junior High School in the Three Village Central School District apparently made the comments because President Trump soon was going to begin illegal immigration raids in Chicago, according to Libs of TikTok on X.
“To all my friends and their families worried, stay safe,” Pahuja (pictured) wrote. “America is no longer the land of the free — we are prisoners of the government. Only a matter of time before they come for all women.”
Pahuja added she hoped the next time those who backed Trump “take a drink” that “it doesn’t swallow right and you go to get help but no one is there and you slowly wither away while struggling to gasp and you suffer long.”
“That’s what you want for people you deem not worthy right [sic]?” she continued. “Don’t worry, I’ll pray for it to last longer.”
She concluded with “If you were tired of me in 2016 … better block me now.”
In a letter dated January 26, Murphy JHS Principal Michael Jantzen wrote that Pahuja “will be out of school until further notice.” He offered nothing further other than assuring parents a “smooth transition and continued high-quality instruction in science.”
According to the local teachers union bio, Pahuja’s parents both were teachers (in India, Pakistan, and Ethiopia before the U.S.), and she says “teaching is not just in [her] blood,” but “feeds [her] soul.”
She also makes almost $165,000 per year.
SCOOP: Teacher at @3vcsd was just placed on leave until further notice after she wished for all Trump supporters to choke and die. pic.twitter.com/U69Pmo6aPA
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) January 27, 2025
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Comments
Which is why, when there was a conference call with siblings and paternal cousins, it was stipulated that there be no discussion of politics. I have some Demo NYC cousins that are very opinionated. Perhaps they don’t realize that the contempt they feel for Republicans/wingnuts/Trumpistas/Trumplicans is more than reciprocated.
“If you were tired of me in 2016…better block me now.”
No thanks, I have a guy who takes out the trash for me now.
“She also makes almost $165,000 per year.”
Stay tuned for an updated number.
I sincerely hope that this “teacher” is on UNPAID SUSPENSION! If it’s with pay, it’s only a long vacation!
Three Village Central School District is located in Suffolk County. Suffolk County voted 55% for Trump. Which means that she is wishing a slow death for a lot of the parents of her students and for a lot of her neighbors. Since some of her students supported Trump, she is also wishing a slow death for some of her students.
I, for one, would not want to pay the salary of someone who publicly wishes me and my fellow Republican supporters a slow death. I imagine there are a number of Republican voters paying taxes that pay this partisan schoolteacher’s salary who have a similar opinion.
If she were in a back-office job at the school you would have to keep paying her salary. It would be unconstitutional to fire her for expressing her opinion. And in fact that is one thing the district may decide to do — transfer her to a desk job.
But the school can legitimately say that she can’t be teaching a class where some of the kids know what she wrote about them, their parents, and their friends.
No it isn’t. Wishing or calling for someones death is not covered by the Constitution. What is wrong with you
What is wrong with you? How can you imagine it is not protected speech? How can you be that ignorant of the first amendment, the most fundamental protection of our freedoms?
The list of exceptions to the freedom of speech is well-established and there are no more to be discovered. Wishing ill of people is absolutely covered, and anyone who claims otherwise is an ignorant dunce who probably also thinks “hate speech” is not protected.
Do you think “hate speech” is not protected? Do you seriously think the government can take action against someone for saying, for instance, that “niggers should all be in prison”, or something like that?
The word you are looking for is *threat*.
No, Treguard, there was no threat whatsoever. It is both dishonest and unconstitutional to characterize anything she wrote as a threat. Doing so would merely render the law against threats void.
The Supreme Court has been very very clear about this; the only reason the laws against threats survive is because “threat” is defined extremely narrowly. Not only must there be an actual threat, which in this case there wasn’t, the threat must be credible to a reasonable person. The defendant needn’t have actually intended to carry it out, or had the means to do so, but the threat must be such that a reasonable person hearing it would seriously think that he had both the intent and the means to do so.
So even if this teacher had written that the next time Trump supporters took a drink she would make it “not swallow right” and cause them to die in agony, that would still not be a threat, since no reasonable person would suppose that she is a witch, and therefore would not suppose that she meant it, let alone that she could do it.
That is the constitution for you, whether you like it or not. There is no controversy about this whatsoever.
We’re past the point where schools and other govt entities bury their problem employees in other jobs, or do nothing jobs–she’s entitled to her opinion, but why any of these people think they have to immediately spew all of this poison on social media is beyond me.
She can talk about issues that have to do with work conditions at school, or similar issues, but I don’t see how wishing a slow, painful death, or harm to Trump supporters, including students, parents, and other school employees advances that issue.
She will just go to the famous “rubber room” and keep drawing the salary until she retires but at least she will be out of the classroom.
It’s the NYC Board of Ed that has the “rubber room”. This is Brookhaven, about 50 miles east of NYC.
Diver64, try doing a little research. You will quickly discover that it is settled law that a government employee who openly wishes for the president’s assassination may not be fired, if the opinion does not interfere with her ability to do her job.
If ne of the teachers of my children said something like this then it would certainly interfere with her ability to do her job because we would be quickly organizing a boycott. Offensive speech is not illegal, but it can clearly constitute evidence of poor judgement and a lack of professionalism severe enough to destroy the confidence and trust that the institution requires to operate effectively. Such damage is conduct unbecoming, and should be grounds for termination. The Unions may challenge that, but I doubt that the school would ever be able to justify putting such a person back in a classroom full of kids.
Do you ever bother reading the comments before replying? Right in my first comment I pointed out that she could not be fired if she were in a back-office job, “But the school can legitimately say that she can’t be teaching a class where some of the kids know what she wrote about them, their parents, and their friends.”
So she can certainly be removed from the classroom, and if that’s the only job she’s suited for she can be fired altogether.