US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Monday revealed that she is a survivor of sexual assault as she opened up about her experience on surviving the January 6 Capitol insurrection.
"I'm a survivor of sexual assault," she said in an Instagram Live video on Monday night while speaking on her trauma during the riot. "And I haven't told many people that in my life."
She said that those in Congress who are telling her "to move on" were using "the same tactics of abusers."
"The reason I say this and the reason I'm getting emotional in this moment is because these folks who tell us to move on, that it's not a big deal, that we should forget what's happened, or even telling us to apologize. These are the same tactics of abusers. And, um, I'm a survivor of sexual assault," Ocasio-Cortez said, without revealing more details of the sexual assault.
"And I haven't told many people that in my life. But when we go through trauma, trauma compounds on each other. And so, whether you had a negligent or a neglectful parent, and -- or whether you had someone who was verbally abusive to you, whether you are a survivor of abuse, whether you experience any sort of trauma in your life, small to large -- these episodes can compound on one another," she said.
Ocasio-Cortez shared details about her experience on January 6 in a broadcast on Instagram Live that lasted for over an hour.
Thanking those who listened to her story on Instagram Live, the New York Democrat said, "And to those who wish to paper over their misdeeds by rushing us to all 'move on' - we can move on when the individuals responsible are held to account."
Ocasio-Cortez is a highly-visible young member of the US Congress and part of a so-called Squad of young lawmakers. She is one of the youngest members of the Congress in history.
An outspoken progressive, she has been a target of Conservative Republicans and media and even moderate Democrats of her own party over various issues.