Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) spoke at a “Get Out the Vote” event on Nov. 3 hosted by Latinos for Harris in Philadelphia, in a final effort to mobilize voters to hit the polls for the 2024 general election on Tuesday.
At the event, which took place at the cultural organization Taller Puertorriqueño in North Philadelphia, Ocasio-Cortez highlighted the importance of the election cycle for Latino voters to a diverse audience of families, community leaders, and volunteers. Other speakers, including state Rep. Danilo Burgos (D-Philadelphia) and Allentown, Pa. Mayor Matthew Tuerk, also contributed messages of urgency about the upcoming presidential election.
The rally also spotlighted lingering frustrations toward presidential candidate and 1968 Wharton graduate Donald Trump’s administration, particularly among those with ties to Puerto Rico. Tuerk, while emphasizing his own background as the first Latino mayor of Allentown, Pa., spoke about the devastation caused by natural disasters in Puerto Rico.
“He abandoned Puerto Ricans in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria," Tuerk said. "So many of us have loved ones back on the islands that lived through it, [and] he wasn’t there when they needed him."
Ocasio-Cortez further highlighted the previous struggles of the Puerto Rican community, but she also underscored the broader ramifications of a potential second Trump term on a variety of marginalized groups.
“His neglect of people on the island resulted in thousands of American deaths due to the blocking of aid, lack of responsiveness, and lack of the ability to see Puerto Ricans as equal,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “This is not just about Puerto Ricans — this is about how Trump treats everybody. It’s about how he treats Black Americans, about how he treats women, and about how he treats working-class people.”
Attendees and speakers alike also voiced their concerns about the comments made at Trump's recent rally at Madison Square Garden, in which a speaker called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage.”
Attendee Miguel Guadalupe told The Daily Pennsylvanian that the comment was the reason he attended the Latinos for Harris event today.
“I feel like we have a duty to not only defend our Puerto Rican community, but to defend this country,” he said.
Guadalupe, who brought his daughter to the event, added that “it’s so important to show [his] children that they need to be civically engaged.”
Other attendees said that they were prompted to join the rally by their own personal anxieties about the election, and in turn, what the results will signify for the future of the country. Educators like Kourtney Gavin attended the event to find solace in a community sharing similar values.
“I wanted to be around a community that shares the same thoughts and feelings that I have right now,” Gavin said. “I’m honestly terrified.”
Ocasio-Cortez also discussed the effectiveness of collective action. As the event reached a close, she emphasized her confidence in the ability of the American public to impact their respective communities.
“We are within the margin of effort, not error,” she said. “We win on purpose. We win with work — and when we have a race within a margin of effort, I’m going to bet on working people every time.”
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