Born in the Parkchester neighborhood of The Bronx, Alexandria’s parents moved the family 30 minutes north to Yorktown in search of a stronger public school for her and her brother. Alexandria’s mother was born and raised in Puerto Rico and worked throughout her childhood as a domestic worker. Alexandria’s father was a second-generation Bronxite, who ran a small business in The Bronx. Throughout her childhood, Representative Ocasio-Cortez traveled regularly to The Bronx to spend time with her extended family. From an early age, the stark contrast in educational opportunities available to her and her cousins, based on their respective zip codes, made an impression on her.
Rep. AOC is a strong supporter of gun reform legislation. She cosponsored and voted for H.R. 8: the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, a bipartisan bill that would establish new background check requirements for firearm transfers between private parties, closing a major loophole. She was also an original cosponsor of bill H.R.1808: the Assault Weapons Ban. This bill makes it a crime to knowingly import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess a semiautomatic assault weapon or large-capacity ammunition feeding device, such as the guns used in the Uvalde shooting. In addition, the bill funds essential state-level buy-back programs that remove weapons currently in our communities.