AOC's 'squad' - The real winners of US election

Rallying a progressive squad in the United States Congress, four Democratic women of colour – known as AOC’s ‘squad’ – were all reelected in the US legislature, the Evening Standard reported.

The group is led by the New York Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, known to fiercely champion rights for women, immigrants and working-class families with a down-to-earth Instagram personality.

The left-winger Ocasio-Cortez, along with Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan formed a powerful sisterhood of congresswomen of colour in 2018.

The group – later nicknamed ‘The Squad’ – is known to push for policies from universal healthcare for all Americans to forward-thinking climate change proposals.

All four have been the subject of frequent xenophobic attacks by President Trump, particularly Omar, who he’s accused of telling “us” - his majority-white following - “how to run our country”.

Since being reelected, the quartet has gained some allies as other progressive representatives also won re-election, including Pramila Jayapal of Washington and Mark Pocan of Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, the progressives, Jamaal Bowman of New York and Cori Bush of Missouri, are headed to Congress for the first time, having won their respective elections. “Our sisterhood is resilient,” Omar tweeted after last night’s victory. “The Squad is continuing to grow,” said political commentator Alexandra Rojas.

Our sisterhood is resilient. pic.twitter.com/IfLtsvLEdx

— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) November 4, 2020

Alexadria Ocasio-Cortez

US Congress representative Alexandria Ocasio Cortez. PHOTO: AFP

The 31-year-old Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest woman ever elected to the US Congress. Born in Bronx to a Puerto-Rican family, before running for Congress in 2018, the economics graduate was previously an activist and earned her living as a waitress.

She has pushed for policies to keep immigrant families together, equality and progressive way to tackle climate change.

Ilhan Omar

US Congress representative Ilhan Omar. PHOTO: AFP

Omar is the first Somali American member of the US congress and one of the first two Muslim women to be elected to Congress in 2018.

Born in Somalia, she arrived in the US at the age of 12, after fleeing the civil war in the African nation. Before arriving in America, her family spent four years in a refugee camp in Kenya. Her grandfather inspired her to get involved in politics and before running for office, she worked as a community educator at the University of Minnesota.

Falsely implied by Trump as not being an American, Omar advocates against anti-Semitism and xenophobia. She also pushes for policies to freeing students’ debt, fair wages.

Ayanna Pressley

US Congress representative Ayanna Pressley. PHOTO: AFP

The first woman of colour from Massachusetts to be elected to Congress, Pressley stands for maternal healthcare, exposing sexual violence, abolishing the tipped minimum wage and lowering the voting age from 18 to 16.

She was born in Cincinnati and raised in Chicago as an only child of a single mother, while her father was in and out of the criminal justice system. Her mother, a tenants’ rights organiser, instilled in her the value of civic engagement.

In January Pressley also spoke out about her alopecia diagnosis to raise awareness.

Rashida Tlaib

US Congress representative Rashida Tlaib. PHOTO: AFP

Born to working-class Palestinian immigrants in Detroit, Tlaib was the oldest of 14 children. She is the first woman of Palestinian descent to be elected to Congress.

The mother of two began her political career in 2004 when she interned with State Representative Steve Tobocman. She stands for immigration policy, anti-racism, abortion rights and Medicare for All.