A Golden West College student contends Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Huntington Beach, made her cry and threatened her when she talked about being undocumented during an advocacy meeting on immigration reform in Washington, D.C.

A representative for the congressman who was present at the meeting calls the allegations “asinine,” saying 18-year-old Jessica Bravo is being used as a pawn for a political agenda and that the person who accompanied Bravo accused Rohrabacher of being a racist.

PICO National Network, a faith-based political advocacy group that Bravo was representing at the Feb. 6 meeting, sent out an email Thursday with its account of Bravo’s meeting and calling on House Speaker John Boehner to “publicly condemn the behavior of his colleague.”

Bravo, a Costa Mesa resident and freshman at Golden West, requested the meeting with Rohrabacher and lawmakers to discuss immigration – a subject she said she is passionate about after experiencing the hurdles that come with being undocumented.

Bravo said her parents immigrated illegally from Mexico with her and her two brothers when she was 3.

It wasn’t until she was older that she discovered the limitations of her immigration status.

“I couldn’t go and get my driver’s license, I couldn’t go and travel with friends, I couldn’t go on educational trips,” Bravo said. “The fact that we have to live in the shadows is just insane.”

Her interest in advocacy work was piqued when she entered college. Bravo signed up for a leadership training course with PICO National Network in Washington, D.C., and met with Rohrabacher.

She also met with Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Rep. Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach, on her trip to discuss immigration reform, she said.

What happened at the meeting with Rohrabacher is unclear – with both sides having different takes.

Bravo said she shared her family’s story, and when she talked about being undocumented, the mood of the meeting changed. She said Rohrabacher’s words brought her to tears.

“He became a little bit more aggressive,” Bravo said about Rohrabacher. “He did say he hated illegals. To me, it was hard to hear all those things.”

Tara Setmayer, spokeswoman for Rohrabacher who attended the meeting, had a very different account.

She said the congressman challenged Bravo’s position, as any Republican would when being confronted with a pro-amnesty argument.

“He asked her: ‘What makes you and your family more important than American citizens and people who come here legally?’ ” Setmayer said. “If you’re going to come here to advocate … you should be able to defend your position. She clearly didn’t know how to answer that, and it was quite apparent that she had been very scripted.”

Bravo’s chaperone, Minerva Gomez of the Orange County Congregation Community Organization, said she stepped in to end the meeting when things escalated.

The two left and, Bravo said, Rohrabacher followed them out of his office “yelling and shaking his finger.” She said he asked if his office had her contact information, to which she replied “yes.”

“He said, ‘Good, now I know where you live,’ ” Bravo said. “To me, that felt like a threat to me and my family and everyone I am here to represent.”

But Setmayer said that, at the end of the meeting, Gomez stepped in and accused the congressman of opposing undocumented students “because of the color of their skin.”

Setmayer said that, as a biracial woman, she took exception to the allegation.

“The tone shifted as soon as Minerva accused the congressman of being a racist,” she said. “I clearly wasn’t going to allow her to get away with that accusation.”

Setmayer said Gomez snapped at her, and Rohrabacher took offense.

“He didn’t appreciate her disrespecting me or his office,” Setmayer said.

She said that, until that point, Rohrabacher had been polite and offered some personal anecdotes to make Bravo feel more comfortable because she appeared nervous.

“Her accusations against the congressman … are an absolute lie,” Setmayer said. “We knew she was undocumented when we scheduled the meeting.”

“He never said those things. He never became red-faced or finger-wagged at her.”

Bravo said she is ready to move on and would meet with Rohrabacher again because her main goal is to continue to work toward immigration reform.

“I don’t want this to be a back and forth issue,” she said. “I want to move forward with this because now’s the time to make changes. I believe in change.”

Setmayer said Rohrabacher’s office is planning to release an op-ed countering emails by PICO lauding Bravo as a hero for its movement.

“It’s shameful that organizations like this prey and exploit the emotional vulnerability of the young people that are in this type of situation,” she said.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7953 or jfletcher@ocregister.com