As expected, quotes from Martin Luther King Jr. filled social media pages yesterday, the national holiday set aside to honor the slain civil rights leader and advocate of nonviolent resistance. But Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., took a different tack.
When U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement tweeted an image of a King statue, noting “Today we honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s message of hope, justice and equality,” Cortez had the following brief response: “Abolish ICE.”
Abolish ICE. https://t.co/h4zIbesjRe
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 18, 2021
Author, speaker and pro-life advocate Alveda King pushed back on her uncle’s behalf, telling Fox News that the congresswoman “ought to take a page out of Martin Luther King Jr.’s book. She noted that her uncle believed the law had its place, “he also said that the law cannot transform the human heart.”
“There are laws on the books now that will severely punish white supremacists, and that should be the case,” she said. “We know that white supremacy is wrong, it must be punished, but every crime against humanity is bad and so we have to protect human dignity, but not only with the law. We have to transform these hearts.”
King’s niece also noted the apparent contradiction between Ocasio-Cortez’s divisive words and her uncle’s teachings while acknowledging that racism must be addressed: “My uncle said only love can drive out hate, so we have to do both at the same time.” {eoa}
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