As previously promised, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez finally divulged in the events of Jan. 6, from her own perspective. 

After nearly a week of silence on Instagram, Rep. AOC began a live speech on the platform, where gave insight into the trauma of surviving the now-infamous day.

She presented her thoughts in an hour-long video that drew over 110,000 viewers on the night of Jan 12, and put the GOP on blast for its part in the Capitol attack fueled by pro-Trump rhetoric based on unsubstantiated claims of a rigged election, 

AL DÍA News previously reported of the vastly unspoken truth of the gravity of the situation for those politicians on the House Floor, particularly BIPOC reps who have been outspoken against the Trump administration’s policies, and particularly those that right-wing media outlets have put great efforts into casting Squad members in a negative light. 

Had the coup been better organized these representatives would have surely been in real, life-threatening danger if they had come into contact with insurrectionists who proved their capacity for violence that day.

On the morning of Trump’s impeachment vote, Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s (D-MA) chief of staff said the panic buttons in Pressley’s office had been inexplicably“torn out” the entire unit. 

They had been installed because Rep. Pressley experiences racist attacks by GOP leaders and supporters on the daily. She has since said that, “feeling unsafe is not new, and being a Black woman and feeling unsafe is not new.”

Rep. AOC herself said that she had a “very close encounter” with the rioters and had legitimate fears for her life. And though she didn’t divulge in great detail on the attack due to security issues, she admitted that the event was “traumatizing,” adding that she didn’t know if she would make it out alive.

At that point in the speech, the Bronx rep. transitioned to speaking about the damage white supremacists continue to cause in the country. 

She said that she worried of other, Republican members of Congress, some steeped in QAnon conspiracies, and those who — though now not outwardly — supported the insurrection and Trump’s baseless claims, who could’ve potentially leaked her location to the rioters, saying that she didn’t feel safe about going to the same secure location as the rest of her colleagues.

Rep. AOC said she was concerned about “colleagues who would create opportunities to allow me to be hurt, kidnapped, etc...” and she didn’t feel safe. 

The reason being that white supremacy has a hold on a large portion of the GOP. Especially after Jan. 6, this can no longer be disregarded. 

BIPOC progressive reps have been sounding the alarms for years heightened in the four years of Trump’s presidency, and sadly, it took a siege on the capitol for mere ripples to expand.

In her speech, Rep. AOC sent the message that it isn’t enough to just expose it, but that white supremacy within Congress must be condemned.

“What claim will you have? That you rule over a destroyed society? That the ashes belong to you?” she asked, directed at the key players of the insurrection, including Trump, and Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley.

The former, she said ventured to overturn the election results, not for the sake of democracy, but for “political ambition,” and instead of seeking betterment for the long-term, they seek short-term gains that fail to better society in the process.

Since the attack, AOC has been undeterred, taking on a leadership role in calling for Trump’s impeachment. 

That goal will be accomplished on Jan. 13, and it will be a feat that is as much her own as it is for House leadership.