U.S. Representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) shared a bit of personal background information with a progressive Jewish group during an event this past Sunday, the final night of Hanukkah.
Speaking at the Jackson Heights Jewish Center in Queens during the event organized by Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, Ocasio-Cortez revealed that her lineage traces back to Sephardic Jews who hid their heritage during the 15th Century. Those Jewish ancestors soon fled Spain, she said; her own ancestors were among those who eventually reached Puerto Rico.
The 29-year-old Democrat is a strong supporter of the Palestinian Authority and an advocate for the so-called “two-state solution.”