The dash to overnight millennial celebrity can take abrupt detours.Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the democratic socialist from the Bronx in New York City, was propelled from an anonymous existence as a bartender after her upset victory in 2018 straight onto magazine covers, late-night TV and the top
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the democratic socialist from the Bronx in New York City, was propelled from an anonymous existence as a bartender after her upset victory in 2018 straight onto magazine covers, late-night TV and the top of every partisan love-hate list in America. It made her perhaps the most exposed and fixated-on House freshman in history.
“I’ll be on calls with service workers, front-line workers, and they’re the ones who have to pull bodies out of apartments,” she said, sitting in her empty and freezing campaign headquarters in the Bronx on a recent afternoon, surrounded by bags of donated food she was preparing to deliver to families in her district. The usually crowded streets were quiet, except for a steady assault of rain and sirens.
“Our brains are just designed to experience a lot of excruciating pain at the idea of being alone,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “When you cast those lonely votes, you feel like your colleagues respect you less, and that you are choosing to marginalize yourself.” It can be difficult to appreciate the “powerful psychology of the House floor,” she said, along with the overall social pressures of Congress.
“Just this morning, we were just talking to our landlord here who had just lost his brother,” she said. “Both of his children are hospital workers.” She speaks all the time to people who cannot afford food, rent and burials. The catastrophe is woven tightly into her day-to-day fabric. Ocasio-Cortez once made an off-handed remark about how she felt like kissing the ground whenever she returned to New York. A senior colleague chastised her. “You know, I heard what you said,” he told her. “Being here is a privilege.” Yes, of course it was, she reassured him. Serving in Congress was “the greatest privilege of my life,” she added.
In mid-March, when some of the first coronavirus cases started showing up in the United States but before its rapid spread, Ocasio-Cortez was mostly sheltered at home like everyone else — in her case, the Parkchester apartment she shares with her boyfriend, Riley Roberts, and a French bulldog named Deco. Getting to spend time in her district has been grounding, she said, despite all the despair.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Coronavirus pandemic 'threatens to make the opioid crisis substantially worse'Social distancing measures have been implemented across the country. But it could be having adverse effects on those who are struggling with substance use disorder.
Read more »
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)First Responders/Health Providers: New CDC instructional videos show how to safely put on (don) and take off (doff) recommended PPE for caring for COVID19 patients. To see the videos and learn more, please visit:
Read more »
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)DYK: People with asthma may be at higher risk of getting very sick from COVID19. Wearing a face covering can help protect those around you who may be at higher risk. Learn more from CDCgov: WorldAsthmaDay
Read more »
Newsom calls reopening Yuba and Sutter counties a 'big mistake' amid coronavirus crisisSutter and Yuba counties allowed businesses to reopen on Monday amid the coronavirus crisis after a similar decision was made in Modoc County in California’s northeastern corner.
Read more »
Airbnb Cuts 1,900 Jobs, 25% Of Its Workforce, As Pandemic Freezes TravelAirbnb says it's cutting about 25% of its workforce in one of the largest layoffs to hit Silicon Valley as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. The pandemic has cut the company's anticipated revenue in more than half, CEO Brian Chesky said.
Read more »