There is a gaping hole of silence where the Republican leaders of this country should be standing. Mass killings are not a Democratic issue or a Republican one. When the gunman carrying a military-grade weapon walked into that Walmart in El Paso, he did not ask which of his victims were Democrats. No, he just shot innocent shoppers with a weapon so deadly, it broke people’s bones. This Democrat had something to say about it.
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) attended a vigil to honor and remember the mass shooting victims in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio. She spoke out against white supremacy to about 500 individuals who came to the vigil at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, New York, according to The NY Daily News:
‘There are so many different issues that are weaving themselves into a braid of violence into our country. One of them is white supremacist terrorism.’
The Brooklyn native pointed out that the U.S. recognizes terrorism committed by off-shore groups like Al Qaeda. Yet, until this past month, domestic groups were not even called out as terrorists. Just as Donald Trump has not been called a white nationalist — until now.
Ocasio-Cortez said that the problem was an international one and referred to the white nationalist who killed 51 people in a New Zealand mosque in March:
‘White supremacy is an international terrorist problem.’
The freshman representative added that Donald Trump’s anti-immigration rants at his 2020 presidential campaign rallies and in his tweets:
‘…is directly responsible for what happened in El Paso.’
The El Paso murderer left behind an online rant. In it, he used some of the white nationalist words that Trump has used, including in a large internet ad buy. It appeared that this rhetoric was core to POTUS’ 2020 campaign message. The representative said that the mass killer claimed the country was being flooded with Hispanic immigrants.
Ocasio-Cortez spoke about Trump’s white nationalism:
‘I’m tired of the questioning if the president is racist. He is.’
Manhattan/Queens Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) also spoke at the vigil. She has been a longtime supporter of a national ban on assault weapons. Maloney spoke about the issue of guns:
‘We have more guns in America than anywhere on earth. And if guns made us safer, than we would be the safest nation earth. And are we?’
The crowd answered as one, “No!”
Shortly after the El Paso and the Dayton, Ohio shootings, the representative tweeted:
‘What Congress can do about exploding white supremacist terrorism: pass gun safety laws, name WS as terrorism in statute, &more. The House passed gun safety bills mos ago. McConnell refuses to hold a VOTE, let alone pass them. He needs to call the Senate back now & do so. #HR8‘
The New York representative also tweeted about journalism and white supremacy:
‘If I were a journalist/worked in news, this is what I’d do rn: 1. Interview actual experts on white supremacy & give them space (more than 2mins or lines) to educate the public on WS, what to look for. Often. 2. Not frame white supremacy&racism as a “conflict” or “debate”…
The Mueller Report Adventures: In Bite-Sizes on this Facebook page. These quick, two-minute reads interpret the report in normal English for busy people. Mueller Bite-Sizes uncovers what is essentially a compelling spy mystery. Interestingly enough, Mueller Bite-Sizes can be read in any order.
