Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez addressed the New York edition of the Women’s March yesterday, presenting a message of inclusion and intersectionality.
Evoking the civil rights movement on the weekend before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Ocasio-Cortez spoke of the Women’s March being a continuation of that movement’s fight for justice.
“Justice is not a concept we read about in a book,” said Ocasio-Cortez . “Justice is about the water that we drink. Justice is about the air that we breathe. Justice is about how easy it is to vote. Justice is about how much ladies get paid. Justice is about if we can stay with our children after have them for a just amount of time: mothers, fathers, and all parents. Justice is about making sure that being polite is not the same thing as being quiet.”
“In fact, sometimes the most righteous thing you can do is shake the table,” she added.
As she spoke, Ocasio-Cortez was wearing a pin on her jacket that featured both a traditional LGBTQ rainbow flag alongside a transgender flag.
“Let us remember that a fight means no person left behind,” said Ocasio-Cortez . “So, when people want to stop talking about the issues black women face, when people want to stop talking about the issues that trans women or immigrant women face, we’ve got to ask them, Why does that make you so uncomfortable?
“This is not just about identity, this is about justice and this is about the America we are going to bring into this world,” Ocasio-Cortez added.
The March was not without its own controversies, as some in the leadership of Women’s March Inc., located primarily in Washington, DC, have had associations with Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, a man known for anti-Semitic views as well as anti-LGBTQ and even anti-woman stances.
This led to many events remaining independent from Women’s March Inc. leadership, even as that leadership seeks to repudiate messages of hate.
Ocasio-Cortez spoke at both the “Unity” event affiliated with the Women’s March Inc., as well as the independent NYC Women’s March. This speech was presented at the affiliated event, even though she spoke at both, and received the aforementioned lapel pin at the NYC Women’s March event.
View the whole speech below:
Image via screen capture from video source.