Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., on Friday blasted the National Rifle Association after 49 people were killed in shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.
“At 1st I thought of saying, “Imagine being told your house of faith isn’t safe anymore. But I couldn’t say ‘imagine,’ Because of Charleston. Pittsburgh. Sutherland Springs. What good are your thoughts & prayers when they don’t even keep the pews safe?” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted early Friday morning.
She wrote in a follow-up tweet: “(‘Thoughts and prayers’ is reference to the NRA’s phrase used to deflect conversation away from policy change during tragedies. Not directed to [New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda] Ardern, who I greatly admire.)”
“This is a time of great vulnerability for our communities,” the congresswoman said in another tweet. “We must come together, fight for each other, & stand up for neighbors. Isolation, dehumanizing stereotypes, hysterical conspiracy theories, & hatred ultimately lead to the anarchy of violence. We cannot stand for it.”