Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) suggested in a series of tweets Wednesday evening that people harbor white supremacist views without realizing it, as they are “often subconscious” and remain “dormant” in us.
The freshman lawmaker explained how she views both white supremacy and white supremacists and suggested that many hold these views without realizing it.
“There is a difference between white supremacists & white supremacy. White supremacy is like a virus,” she began.
“Supremacists are those who have been completely overcome by the disease, but supremacy – the virus – exists on a larger scale beyond just the infected. It also lays dormant,” she explained, adding that it is “often subconscious” as well:
White supremacy is often subconscious. & Clearly, our nation has not been inoculated. WS is our nation’s original sin;the driving logic of slavery, of Native genocide, of Jim Crow, of segregation, of mass incarceration,of “Send Her Back.”
It never went away. It was just dormant.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 8, 2019
Addressing white supremacy, according to the lawmaker, is not as simple as condemning the KKK or the ideology as a whole, because far too many people refuse to look in the mirror and realize that they, too, harbor supremacist views:
Perhaps more than the obvious last steps of the supremacist,we must examine the nuance of their first steps.
That is a painful inquiry, bc for many, we may see familiarity in those first steps. And that familiarity is very difficult to see + admit. We’d rather not talk about it.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 8, 2019
She continued:
Healing ourselves of white supremacy will be hard. It will be hard because it requires us to confront *ourselves.*
We wish it was as simple as denouncing a white hood, a burnt cross, vile language. But we need to address where supremacy *begins,* not just where it ends.
Perhaps more than the obvious last steps of the supremacist,we must examine the nuance of their first steps.
That is a painful inquiry, bc for many, we may see familiarity in those first steps. And that familiarity is very difficult to see + admit. We’d rather not talk about it.
Recognizing white supremacy in ourselves – our institutions, our subconscious, our own past remarks or acts (no matter how consciously unintentional), is what makes the healing work ahead challenging.
But it is not impossible,and confronting it is the only way to move forward.
Because of that, Ocasio-Cortez is calling on the nation to focus conversations on “white supremacy and racism” rather than individual “white supremacists and racists.” Once people – i.e. Trump supporters – begin realizing that they are succumbing to the “virus,” the country can progress, she suggests:
What this moment is asking of us is to discuss *white supremacy and racism* as much – or possibly more than – *white supremacists and racists.*
When we do that, I believe we will start to make progress.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 8, 2019
But it is incredibly important that we recognize that perfectly normal, good people are capable of aiding racism & white supremacy.
Recognizing that is not about pillorying people. It’s about learning to recognize *the virus* & end an oppressive system designed to hurt us *all.*
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 8, 2019
The tweets echo what the socialist lawmaker told the crowd at a Brooklyn vigil for the El Paso and Dayton victims Monday night, urging people who are “falling into the grips of white supremacy” to “come back because there is a mother waiting for you.”
“I know there’s a teacher waiting for you saying what happened to my kid?” Ocasio-Cortez said. “What happened to my friend? And we will always be here and hold space for you to come back,” she said.
There seems to be a discrepancy, however, between Ocasio-Cortez’s advice and the way she addresses the president. While she is actively urging the U.S. to focus on the “virus” – white supremacy and racism – rather than the “infected” – white supremacists and racists – she has repeatedly referred to Trump as the latter, even suggesting that his immigration remarks are “directly responsible” for the carnage in El Paso.
“So I don’t want to hear the question: ‘Is this president racist?’ anymore,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “He is.”:
Here’s what we have to say to all of America’s men and women falling in the grips of hatred and white supremacy:
Come back. It’s not too late.
You have neighbors and loved ones waiting, holding space for you.
And we will love you back. ⬇️ https://t.co/f2nCZzwLUy— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 6, 2019
Story cited here.
