Connor Spence, an Amazon union organizer, took aim at Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and other Democratic lawmakers for failing to show support sooner, saying âwe donât need it now.â
Progressive outlet Status Coup News asked Spence why the organizers were fending for themselves while progressive lawmakers failed to show support even on Twitter.
Spence responded, âI think itâs just that our campaign and our model was such a long shot, they saw it as risky to even associate with us. Because at the end of the day, they are politicians as much as they, you know, say that theyâre on the side of the workers, they have to prioritize getting reelected and all that stuff.â
Mentioning Ocasio-Cortez, Spence explained the issue was not that she âflaked out on usâ but that she âwent radio silent for six months after that and didnât show a word for us until it was clear that we were gonna win.â
Spence stressed they do not want to âbe reliant on political outsiders.â
He continued, âAt the end of the day, we won without them, and we can continue to achieve big victories without them. You know, it would have been helpful to have that support early on.â
The union organizer argued it is not âreally fair for them to stand at the finish line now and say that they support us because we needed the support in the beginning. We donât need it now.â
Watch his comments below:
Additionally, podcaster Krystal Ball called out Ocasio-Cortez after she appeared to celebrate the win on Twitter.
âHereâs the guy who organized the union drive talking about how you left them high and dry. These are your constituents and you couldnât be bothered to show up until theyâre on the cusp of victory,â Ball tweeted.
Ocasio-Cortez fired back, saying, âThe warehouse isnât in my district and maybe you should look at a map before claiming so. One scheduling conflict aside, we have requested oversight investigations into Amazon, met with Amazon workers in the Woodside warehouses, and more. Hope you do more due diligence next time.â
Fox News noted the vote in favor of unionizing is the first of its kind in Amazonâs history.
