Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) made headlines again on Monday — this time for a tirade when approached by protesters at a movie theater in Brooklyn.
AOC was visiting the Alamo Drafthouse movie theater with her fiancé, Riley Roberts, when pro-Palestinian protesters approached and challenged the representative to call Israel’s actions in Gaza “genocide.”
The late Monday afternoon exchange, which was captured on phone video, occurred at approximately 5 p.m. inside the Brooklyn theater.
When confronted by protesters about her views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, AOC told one protester holding up her phone: “I need you to understand that this is not OK.”
The protester replied: “It’s not OK that there’s a genocide happening, and you’re not actively against it.”
Angry, AOC responded, “You’re lying,” then attempted to leave by walking away and stepping onto an escalator, flanked by Roberts.
The protesters followed AOC as she made her way to an exit.
Visibly agitated, AOC paused and confronted them.
Following AOC’s lead, Roberts gave the protesters a piece of his mind as well.
Angry Leftists go after @AOC at a movie theater.
I love it. pic.twitter.com/zUtlLnqhKt
— Mila Joy (@MilaLovesJoe) March 5, 2024
When AOC was asked if she was worried that video of the exchange would be posted to social media, she replied, “You’re gonna cut it … and you’re gonna clip this so that it’s completely out of context.”
The New York Post reported that contrary to her claims, AOC has not publicly condemned Israel for its military action in Gaza, following the murder of approximately 1,200 Israeli civilians by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
The congresswoman claimed, “I already said that it was [genocide], and y’all are just gonna pretend that it wasn’t over and over again. It’s f–ked up, man, and you’re not helping these people, and you’re not helping them, you’re not helping them.”
In the past, AOC argued that the “whole point of protesting is to make ppl uncomfortable.”
#FreePalestine pic.twitter.com/UCzoe6wBvi
— General Strike 🍀(Terrence Daniels) (@Terrence_STR) March 5, 2024
Notably, during an interview on “Meet the Press” in January, AOC sidestepped a direct question about whether using the term “genocide” appropriately described Israeli military action in Gaza.
