Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) shared a message of solidarity with trans youth during a recent social media Q&A after someone asked if she had anything to say to them amid an onslaught of anti-trans attacks by the GOP.

“I want to say that I know this time is completely terrifying for so many people, and it feels hard to know where your place is, and especially in politics, where it feels like people in both parties are blaming you for everything that’s happening, I just want you to know that they couldn’t be more wrong,” said Ocasio-Cortez, who is known for her ability to easily connect with constituents and for directly communicating with Americans through social media on a regular basis.

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Ever since the GOP won the 2024 presidential election, Democrats have been at each other’s throats over the role trans issues played in their own loss, despite exit polls indicating that inflation and an unpopular incumbent president both doomed Kamala Harris’ 107-day run for president.

Advocates have begged the party not to give in to hate and turn on one of the nation’s most marginalized groups, especially considering any role trans rights did play in the election was directly tied to the GOP’s obsessive demonization of the community and its false claims that trans rights are all Democrats care about (especially considering Harris barely mentioned them throughout the 2024 campaign).

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But that hasn’t stopped some Democrats from capitulating on certain trans issues, especially when it comes to whether trans girls should be allowed to play on women’s sports teams.

It makes sense, then, that Ocasio-Cortez would be working to assure trans kids that nothing is their fault and that all they are trying to do is be themselves.

“You are fine just the way you are,” she said, “and in a time when it’s hard to know who stands with you, I want you to know that I stand with you, and everyone who wants to be mean shouldn’t be mean around me.”

In January, House Democrats overwhelmingly showed solidarity with the trans community, with only two (both from MAGA-voting districts) voting in favor of an anti-trans sports bill passed by the GOP.

The unified Democratic opposition to the bill was significant, considering the party’s infighting over trans rights. After the vote, Ocasio-Cortez said it’s this type of strength that will ultimately allow the Democrats to protect vulnerable communities.

“When we tell the truth about what Republicans are doing, and when we’re unafraid to do that, it generates momentum,” she told political reporter Dave Weigel at the time. “When we lean into that momentum that we generate, and when Democrats aren’t afraid to throw a damn punch, then we can see that we can yield results.”

She added that the party can’t “cower in the face of tough issues ” because “people are looking for strength.”

“The reason why I think some folks in the Democratic Party have felt like trans issues are hot water, or immigration issues are hot water, is because they haven’t felt confident or the ability to confidently throw a punch on solid ground that is persuasive and uniting people.”

Calling out GOP malice “aggressively” is what brings people together, she emphasized.

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