Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., has become known for appearing in makeup tutorials when away from the Capitol. In 2020, Vanity Fair described her as “perhaps the only member of Congress who moonlights as a beauty influencer.”
Now, she’s posted another Instagram video, and this time she’s trying to merge politics and makeup.
“Happy Friday! And I say happy because joy, too, can be can act of resistance,” she said in a video.
“I want to talk about personal acts of reclamation, because sometimes people will say, ‘There’s nothing I can do. I can’t do. I feel so powerless.’ And there is no act too small that you can engage in. And even today I have a personal errand. I need to redo my nails, and I’ve decided that I’m going to use my new manicure as almost like a personal act of reclamation for me and my story.”
Some Twitter users disagreed.
“Her nails. That’s her act too small,” one person wrote. “Because god forbid she write legislation, hit the streets in her district, register voters, call in phone banks, write postcards.”
Take a look —
Y’all’s political heroes are some goofy ass people. Holy shit, this is what passes as POTUS material and brilliant strategist to a far left neoprogressive. Y’all future ain’t bright. https://t.co/s2qbrUtAzy
— THEE Kurt Nice (@KurtNiceHHL) July 5, 2022
The phrase “joy as an act of resistance” comes from a 2008 poem by Toi Dericotte. It has become a favorite slogan of Ocasio-Cortez and her ilk. Former congressional candidate Nina Turner, D-Ohio, tweeted it on Saturday.
“Those who oppress want the oppressed to be miserable,” Turner said. “Therefore, joy is an act of resistance.”
Ocasio-Cortez has made a similar argument in the past. In 2020, she appeared in Vogue to speak about her makeup routine. The representative has become known for her red lipstick, although she often takes promotional photos without it.
“Beauty is political,” she wrote in the caption. “It’s quite a radical act, and it’s almost like a mini protest to love yourself,” she said in the video.
Take a look —
Happy Friday! Beauty is political.💄
Thanks @voguemagazine for a conversation on what it means to work a red lip on Capitol Hill.
Get ready with us at the full video link below ⬇️ https://t.co/Ah0zQ3jaS0
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 21, 2020
Those who oppress want the oppressed to be miserable. Therefore, joy is an act of resistance.
— Nina Turner (@ninaturner) July 2, 2022
The Horn editorial team