Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the U.S. needs to start a "conversation about whether to abolish prisons in the country" to disentangle itself from a history of "American apartheid."

"Mass incarceration is our American reality. It is a system whose logic evolved from the same lineage as Jim Crow, American apartheid, & slavery," the New York Democrat said Monday on Twitter. "To end it, we have to change. That means we need to have a real conversation about decarceration & prison abolition in this country."



Mass incarceration is our American reality. It is a system whose logic evolved from the same lineage as Jim Crow, American apartheid, & slavery.



To end it, we have to change.



That means we need to have a real conversation about decarceration & prison abolition in this country. https://t.co/9E9NTAmBNi — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) October 7, 2019



The freshman representative expanded on her comment, saying that the country needs to find "just alternatives to incarcerations."

"I know the term 'prison abolition' is breaking some people’s brains. The right is already freaking out," she said. "[P]eople tend to say 'what do you do with all the violent people?' as a defense for incarcerating millions. Our lawmaking process means we come to solutions together, &either way we should work to an end where our prison system is dramatically smaller than it is today."



Lastly, people tend to say “what do you do with all the violent people?” as a defense for incarcerating millions.



Our lawmaking process means we come to solutions together, &either way we should work to an end where our prison system is dramatically smaller than it is today.



/4 — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) October 7, 2019



The 29-year-old congresswoman has been a consistent critic of the prison system, advocating for the end of private prisons. This summer, she compared facilities that house migrants to concentration camps.