Amid the fawning media coverage of “the future” of the Democratic Party, do we really know Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)?
Ocasio-Cortez is positioned to be elected to New York’s 14th congressional district, but according to her mom: “Her aspiration is to be president,” as reported by the New York Post.
While she’s still seven years away from being eligible, her new position as the face of the Democratic Party makes it all the more relevant to know what exactly Ocasio-Cortez and the DSA believe.
According to the DSA, “they are the largest socialist organization in the United States.”
The New Republic, a progressive magazine, recently published an article claiming that Bernie Sanders isn’t “far left enough,” in comparison to Ocasio-Cortez, who was at the forefront in calling for the abolishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Remember when the former community organizer, President Barack Obama stated?: “If you’ve got a business – you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen.” Well, that was Democratic-Socialist-lite, and millennials aren’t looking for the skinny option anymore.
The DSA claims they do not want to create an “all-powerful government bureaucracy,” however, Ocasio-Cortez and the DSA are campaigning for government expansion by establishing universal health care, universal income, state ownership of energy and steel, and control of wages across the board.
The DSA believes that rather than being based on merit, undesired jobs should be compensated the most and that employment in our capitalistic society is intentionally “distributed on the basis of class, race, ethnicity, or gender.” Ultimately, socialism will strive to “eliminate all but the most enjoyable kinds of labor.”
In the United States, 73% of Americans will die with personal debt, 1/10th of 1 percent of Americans will study economics, only 31% of millennials (second largest voting bloc) can correctly define socialism. Despite these alarming statistics, the DSA believes that the “people should run both the economy and society democratically to meet human needs.”
Furthermore, not only do they want “socialized control” of several industry sectors, but they also present directives in their organizing manual about combating the patriarchy and cis-gendered male privilege:
It is easy for white, middle class, male and/or straight activists to assume they are “cured” of racism, sexism, classism, and other isms when joining the DSA.
Dealing with privilege and supremacy is a lifelong task for all activists.
Remember, it is not the job of the oppressed to point out oppressive behavior to the oppressor.
Additionally, the DSA acknowledges their coalition may range from motivated progressive Democrats to Karl Marx enthusiasts; what matters is that they are fellow travelers in socialist solidarity.
Not only do Ocasio-Cortez and the DSA want to #AbolishICE, but the DSA wants to abolish the Senate.
As stated in their digital manifest, direct democracy would require the abolishment of the “extremely unrepresentative political body” known as the Senate. The socialists take issue that each state has equal weight and representation — no matter if it is Montana or California — oddly, an ideology that prides itself on equity, attacks the system of egalitarian state influence.
Any project within a capitalist society short of full-scale revolution will be fraught with similar dangers. But socialists need to struggle for power using every tool available to us; the electoral field is too important to leave in the hands of our enemies.
According to the DSA National Electoral Strategy, if you are not on board with their rhetoric or policies, or sympathize with the patriarchal capitalistic society, you are compromised. You are the “enemy.”
This is the Democratic-Socialist of America; this is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Alexander Ruiz is a graduate of The United States Merchant Marine Academy, a veteran U.S Coast Guard law enforcement officer, and a licensed Merchant Mariner. He is a Californian native and currently a graduate student in political science at New York University.
Related: Democratic Socialist: To Be Clear, Democratic Socialists Are Working To ‘Overthrow Capitalism’