He’s known for being an opinionated know-it-all. But Piers Morgan just chose the wrong person to criticise. Because his latest attempt to patronise and mock an outstanding politician revealed what an ignorant misogynist he truly is. (And not for the first time.)
“Equal rights aren’t trends”
On 20 January, US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez corrected screenwriter Aaron Sorkin after he offered ‘advice’ to newly elected Democrats. Sorkin said they should “stop acting like young people”.
Ocasio-Cortez’s response was swift and absolutely on point. Because she totally understands the issues she’s campaigning on and the voters she represents:
News Flash: Medicare for All & equal rights aren’t trends.
When people complain about low turnout in some demos, it’s not because communities are apathetic, it’s bc they don’t see you fighting for them.
If we don’t show up for people, why should you feel entitled to their vote? https://t.co/oGRsG9NZV3
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 20, 2019
Over 50,000 people liked Ocasio-Cortez’s tweet. Thousands more shared it or made supportive comments. As ever, she also dealt with negative comments perfectly. As she pointed out, saying things like ‘Sorkin is looking for gravitas’ just plays into language bias that is often sexist, classist and exclusive:
Let’s dig into “gravitas,” bc it’s an ambiguous word, selectively applied.
Ever wonder how expression that’s feminine, working-class, queer, or poc isn’t deemed as having “gravitas,” but talking like an Aaron Sorkin character does? 🤔
Men have “gravitas,” women get “likeable.” https://t.co/0g9FNpExAl
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 20, 2019
And then Morgan waded in. But actually, his contribution just gave Ocasio-Cortez even more kudos. (Not that she needed it.)
Who knows more about politics?
Morgan’s tweet was patronising, sexist and just rude. (No change there, then.) But this time, he really chose the wrong opponent, and Twitter took him down.
For a start, many corrected his point that Sorkin ‘knows more’ than an elected politician:
Aaron Sorkin is a television writer, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a sitting congresswoman, and Piers Morgan is a failed Dancing With the Stars contestant. Decide for yourself who knows what about politics. https://t.co/3MZs2iqMP8
— Evan DeSimone (@Smorgasboredom) January 20, 2019
I must have missed the bit where Sorkin was elected to office in a race against a top-ranking Democrat with a 17-1 monetary disadvantage?
— Sam (@Sammyj939) January 21, 2019
Others challenged his sexist, ageist language:
'Young lady…'?! Awful. https://t.co/aqdO8pRyUj
— Media Lens (@medialens) January 21, 2019
https://twitter.com/ClaudieCG/status/1087390998542540801
Some threw Morgan’s words straight back at him:
https://twitter.com/dominickevans/status/1087082467280986114
Others, meanwhile, simply showed how pointless Morgan is:
https://twitter.com/uqbar__________/status/1087103502151811072
https://twitter.com/N0TN0WJ0HN/status/1087081329383096321
There’s no need to draw any more attention to Morgan. He’s just an attention seeker. But in the current climate of political chaos, Morgan’s open support for Donald Trump is worrying. He even offered himself as Trump’s new chief of staff. But his latest support for Sorkin is another clear racist marker.
Sorkin’s outspoken pro-Israel stance openly criticises the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement which works to end the oppression of Palestinian people. He’s also a member of the so-called Creative Community for Peace. This high-profile group works to counter the BDS cultural boycott against Israel. And it literally rewrites the real issues faced by Palestinian people. Ocasio-Cortez, meanwhile, broke the mould in US politics by accurately challenging Israel’s occupation of Palestine. So it was almost inevitable that Sorkin wouldn’t be a fan.
Nonetheless, Morgan’s added layer of insults on Sorkin’s attack is problematic.
In her own words
Since she was elected, Ocasio-Cortez has faced continued and sustained attacks for her outspokenness and radically principled stances. Most criticisms have focused on her age, gender and ethnicity. But this hasn’t stopped her:
https://twitter.com/mollycrabapple/status/1087429572377935872
And the best person to speak on behalf of Ocasio-Cortez is Ocasio-Cortez:
This has deeper consequences, bc as we’ve seen w/ narratives advanced by the right, they have trouble recognizing intelligence in people they disagree with.
This is what bias looks like: for some ppl, small mistakes mean they’re not “serious,” yet others are forgiven for worse.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 20, 2019
If you notice, on the right they’ll flatly call people blanket terms, and even make things up. And I don’t mean trolls – I mean their biggest commentators + TV figures.
This is different from criticizing a specific take you disagree with, or pointing out discriminatory patterns.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 20, 2019
Lastly, we wouldn’t need to talk about bathrooms at all if we acted like adults, washed our hands + minded our own business instead of trying to clock others.
Going by track record, I’d feel safer in a bathroom w/ a trans woman than a powerful male executive any day of the week.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 20, 2019
Ocasio-Cortez is an inspiration and a political force to be celebrated. Morgan’s words won’t stop her at all. But here in the UK, as right-wing tensions grow amid Brexit chaos, his bile isn’t welcome. Eyes on Morgan. And even if we don’t want to share his misogynistic bullshit – we’re watching.
Featured images via US House of Representatives/Wikimedia and iDominick/Wikimedia
