Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Calls Out Republican Congressman Ted Yoho Over Sexist Slur; Watch Viral Video of Her Speech
Democratic Party Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Thursday admonished a Republican congressman for allegedly hurling a sexist slur at her on the steps of the US Capitol. Ocasio-Cortez cast the incident of Florida Representative Ted Yoho as all-too-common behaviour by men, including US President Donald Trump
Washington, July 24: Democratic Party Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Thursday admonished a Republican Congressman for allegedly hurling a sexist slur at her on the steps of the US Capitol. Ocasio-Cortez and other Democrats assailed a sexist culture of 'accepting violence and violent language against women'.
In her nearly 10-minute speech on the floor of the House of Representatives, Ocasio-Cortez cast the incident of Florida Representative Ted Yoho as all-too-common behaviour by men, including US President Donald Trump and other Republicans. Earlier, Ocasio-Cortez had rejected an offer of contrition from Yoho for his language during this week’s Capitol steps confrontation. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Delivers Fiery Speech Defending Green New Deal, Says Climate Change Not an Elitist Issue.
Addressing the House of Representatives, Ocasio-Cortez said, as quoted by news agency AFP, "He called me disgusting, he called me crazy, he called me out of my mind." Adding more, she said, "In front of reporters, Representative Yoho called me -- and I quote -- a 'fucking bitch'."
Here's the speech by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez:
Through her speech, the 30-year-old Democratic Party Representative wanted to state that Yoho's behaviour was symptomatic of a wider problem of attitudes towards women. Ocasio-Cortez said, "What we are seeing is that incidents like these are happening in a pattern. This is a pattern of an attitude towards women and the dehumanisation of others." She even said that Yoho's behaviour is 'cultural problem' and is 'not new'.
Apart from Representative Yoho, Ocasio-Cortez gave the example of one incident when she was told to go home to another country by United States President Donald Trump. She had said, "The President of the United States last year told me to go home to another country with the implication that I don't even belong in America." Ocasio-Cortez is of Puerto Rican origin, who was born and raised in New York City.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 24, 2020 12:38 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).