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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Welfare & Poverty
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Bills to chip away at economic injustice: "A Just Society"
America today is at its wealthiest point than ever in its history. And in fact, many would argue, that today the United States represents one of the richest societies in global history.
Except in all these record profits, 40 million Americans are living in poverty. And 18.5 million are living in extreme poverty, which is measured at less than $2 a day.
That's why I'm so excited to introduce a suit of legislation, including five bills and one resolution, that begins to chip away at our issues of economic injustice. And were calling it a 'Just Society.'
The legislation would update the federal legislation of poverty, advance a housing justice agenda, increase access to the social safety net for undocumented immigrants and people with criminal records, and champion worker dignity.
Source: AOC, by Lynda Lopez, p.96-97
, Aug 11, 2020
Reagan's "welfare queens" are a racist caricature
Ocasio-Cortez criticized the treatment of minorities throughout American history, from FDR's New Deal, which she claimed was racist, to Ronald Reagan's policies, which she said "pitted" white working class people against minorities in order "to screw
over all working-class Americans," particularly African-Americans and Hispanics."So you think about this image of welfare queens and what he was really trying to talk about was this like really resentful vision of essentially black women who were
doing nothing, that were 'sucks' on our country," she said.
"And it's this whole tragedy of the commons type of thinking where it's like because this one specific group of people, that you are already kind of subconsciously primed to resent,
you give them a different reason that's not explicit racism but still rooted in a racist caricature," Ocasio-Cortez continued. "It gives people a logical reason, a 'logical' reason to say, 'Oh yeah, no, toss out the whole social safety net.'"
Source: Louis Casiano, Fox News, on 2019 SXSW conference
, Mar 10, 2019
Democratic Socialism: no American should be too poor to live
Q: You were endorsed by a group, the Democratic Socialists. And you have embraced this label.OCASIO-CORTEZ: There's so much focus on this endorsement [but it's just one part of a] broad-based coalition of people.
Q: What is your definition of
democratic socialist?
OCASIO-CORTEZ: In a modern, moral and wealthy society, no American should be too poor to live. And to me, that means every working class American in this country should have access to dignified health care without going broke.
It means you should be able to send your kids to college and trade school if they so choose. And no person should feel precarious in their access to housing.
Q: Older Americans hear "the S word" and they tie it to ugly governments from Europe and the
past.
OCASIO-CORTEZ: Democrats are a big tent party. I'm not trying to impose an ideology on all several hundred members of Congress. It's not about selling an -ism or an ideology or a label or a color. This is about selling our values.
Source: Meet the Press 2018 interview for Congress NY-14 election
, Jul 1, 2018
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