Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. doesn’t mince words. Especially when she uses her social media platforms.
But there’s an old adage about being careful what you put in writing. And Ocasio-Cortez is getting taken to court because of it.
As first reported by The New York Post, Ocasio-Cortez (aka AOC), along with other members of the far-left “Squad” are facing a class action lawsuit alleging that they incited and encouraged anti-Israel protests and encampments at Columbia University earlier this year.
According to the report, five anonymous students filed the lawsuit, naming AOC and Democratic Reps. Jamal Bowman of New York and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.
The lawsuit also names roughly a dozen anti-Israel organizing groups.
“The Gaza Encampment was extreme and outrageous conduct. It was illegal. It violated university rules. Its occupants harassed, followed, physically blocked, intimidated, and bullied Jewish students,” the lawsuit reads.
Two of the five students behind the lawsuit are Jewish. One of them, identified only as “Tim Doe,” spoke about his experience with the New York Post.
“During the protests, I witnessed numerous offensive and antisemitic signs and messages, including antisemitic skunk posters with the Star of David,” he told The Post.
“In one instance, I was walking with my non-Jewish friends when I was singled out because I was wearing my yarmulke. A leader of the pro-Palestinian protest approached our group and confronted me. He singled me out, yelling that I needed to move, and when I refused, he began to shove me out of the way,” he added.
“William Doe,” another senior who joined the suit, said his senior design expo was cancelled due to the encampment.
“Michael Doe,” a sophomore, claimed he was told, “Keep walking Zionist” and was followed and screamed by protesters.
The encampment at Columbia University made international headlines, with students and even faculty participating in a campus takeover that lasted weeks.
The protests forced classes online and heavily limited access to campus buildings as students were trying to study for final exams. Columbia, like other universities across the country, ultimately had to cancel its graduation ceremony.
“Those were real damages sustained by the 36,000 students at Columbia who chose to obey university rules, go to class, and pursue their education, only to be frustrated at the finish line by the … acts of their classmates and professors, with the assistance and encouragement of outside activists,” the lawsuit says.
Ocasio-Cortez, Omar and Bowman all spoke positively of anti-Israel protests at the time, including a post from AOC during the heightened tension happening at Columbia:
If any kid is hurt tonight, responsibility will fall on the mayor and univ presidents.
Other leaders and schools have found a safe, de-escalatory path. This is the opposite of leadership and endangers public safety. A nightmare in the making.
I urge the Mayor to reverse course. https://t.co/52eAEfbJjq
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 1, 2024
According to the Post report, the trio of liberal lawmakers named in the suit also trespassed on the campus in April — showing up “and participated in the encampment” when access to campus was supposed to be limited to those with student IDs.
None of the congress members or other groups being sued responded to messages seeking comment.