New York‘s most prominent national Democrats dealt with protests of various kinds on Thursday evening, including being shouted down from speaking and having their offices blocked by angry demonstrators.
During a town hall she was hosting in Queens, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) was yelled at within minutes of taking the stage by two men upset with her job in Congress, specifically accusing her of only caring “about illegal aliens.”
The event was disrupted in its early minutes. Two people have been removed by NYPD. pic.twitter.com/goWA2D8oxE
— Stephen Wentzell (@StephenWentzell) February 22, 2024
The two men, who were taken out of the venue by police, called her a “scrub” and accused her of not caring about constituents. One of the men also called her a “disgrace” before being drowned out by chants of “AOC” from the crowd.
Ocasio-Cortez brushed off the protesters after they were taken out of the venue, saying “clearly” her New York City district was “in favor of progressive immigration policy.” Her town hall took place the same day she announced she was running for reelection.
In another Big Apple borough, protesters opposing Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s (D-NY) policy on the war between Israel and Hamas blocked off their offices in Manhattan.
The group Jewish Voice for Peace NYC claimed that 18 of its protesters, who were blocking the entrance to a building where both New York senators have offices, were arrested on Thursday. The group said it is calling on Schumer and Gillibrand to “dump” support from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee lobbying group, which is pro-Israel, and “support a ceasefire in Gaza.”
BREAKING: 18 Jewish New Yorkers were just arrested for shutting down @SenSchumer and @SenGillibrand’s offices and refusing to leave, calling on the Senators to #DumpAIPAC and support a ceasefire in Gaza. Down the street, thousands are taking over the AIPAC headquarters. pic.twitter.com/9Wo8LvIQsh
— Jewish Voice for Peace NYC (@jvpliveNY) February 22, 2024
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More than a dozen Democratic members of Congress called for a ceasefire in Gaza in a letter to President Joe Biden on Thursday, but Schumer and Gillibrand were not among them, nor have they been among those calling for an end to Israel’s operation launched in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas.
The protests in Manhattan are part of a larger trend of pro-Palestinian activists making their demands known since last fall.
