The congresswoman revealed her trauma as she accused Republicans who deflect blame for last month’s Capitol riot of using “the tactics of abusers”.<\/p>\n
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<\/span>IMAGE COPYRIGHT<\/span>EPA<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n“I’m a survivor of sexual assault,” she said, fighting back tears. “And I haven’t told many people that in my life.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
She is one of the highest profile Democrats in Congress.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Ms Ocasio-Cortez, a self-described democratic socialist who represents the 14th district in New York City, is also often a target of conservatives.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
In an Instagram Live on Monday night, the 31-year-old disclosed little about her sexual assault ordeal, but said: “When we go through trauma, trauma compounds on each other.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
She blasted conservative Republicans like Texas Senator Ted Cruz for denying what she described as their responsibility for the storming of the Capitol complex, which left five people dead.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
After Mr Cruz last week agreed with Ms Ocasio-Cortez on a policy matter, she lashed out: “You almost had me murdered three weeks ago so you can sit this one out.”<\/p>\n
In Monday night’s Instagram Live, she criticised Chip Roy, a Texas congressman, for demanding she apologise to Mr Cruz.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
“These are the tactics of abusers,” she said during the broadcast to 150,000 or so viewers. “Or rather, these are the tactics that abusers use.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
“And so when I see this happen, how I feel, how I felt was: ‘Not again.’ I’m not going to let this happen again. I’m not going to let it happen to me again. I’m not going to let it happen to the other people who’ve been victimised by this situation again. And I’m not going to let this happen to our country. We’re not going to let it happen.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
‘Move on’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\nShe also singled out Senator Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, who joined Mr Cruz in challenging the results of November’s presidential election amid debunked claims from now-former President Donald Trump that the vote had been stolen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\nA pro-Trump mob broke into the Capitol on 6 January as lawmakers gathered to certify President Joe Biden’s election victory, and Ms Ocasio-Cortez described the ensuing mayhem as like a “zombie movie”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\nDuring her Instagram Live, she said: “We cannot move on without accountability. We cannot heal without accountability. All these people telling us to move on are doing so at their own convenience.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\nShe added: “The folks who are saying, ‘We should move on,’ ‘We shouldn’t have accountability,’ et cetera, are saying: ‘Can you just forget about this so we can, you know, do it again?'”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\nMs Ocasio-Cortez described hiding in her bathroom at her congressional office during the chaos of the Capitol riot last month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n“I thought I was going to die,” she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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She also singled out Senator Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, who joined Mr Cruz in challenging the results of November’s presidential election amid debunked claims from now-former President Donald Trump that the vote had been stolen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
A pro-Trump mob broke into the Capitol on 6 January as lawmakers gathered to certify President Joe Biden’s election victory, and Ms Ocasio-Cortez described the ensuing mayhem as like a “zombie movie”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
During her Instagram Live, she said: “We cannot move on without accountability. We cannot heal without accountability. All these people telling us to move on are doing so at their own convenience.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
She added: “The folks who are saying, ‘We should move on,’ ‘We shouldn’t have accountability,’ et cetera, are saying: ‘Can you just forget about this so we can, you know, do it again?'”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Ms Ocasio-Cortez described hiding in her bathroom at her congressional office during the chaos of the Capitol riot last month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
“I thought I was going to die,” she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n