Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Dress at Met Gala 2021 Says 'Tax the Rich' | PEOPLE.com
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The Democratic congresswoman made her first appearance at the Costume Institute Gala on Monday night
By Gabrielle Duncan September 13, 2021 09:29 PM Advertisement FBTweetMorePinterestEmailSend Text MessagePrintAlexandra Ocasio-Cortez Credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez decided to send a bold message with her fashion at the 2021 Met Gala.
The Democratic congresswoman, 31, made her debut appearance at the Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum on Monday, wearing a white gown by Brother Vellies with the political slogan "Tax the Rich" splashed across the back in red lettering.
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She completed the outfit with a pair of red shoes and a bag also bearing the same words.
"It's really about having a real conversation," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters about the inspiration behind the statement. "It's about fairness and equity in our system and I think that this conversation is particularly relevant."
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Credit: Kevin Mazur/MG21/Getty
"I would not be here if it wasn't with Aurora as a designer," she continued. "Aurora James, she started off just a couple years ago with three grand in her pockets at the fleas selling her works and now she's here at the Met Gala. And that is the story of our city, it's the story of who should be centered, especially as a Black woman, immigrant designer in an industry where that is severely underrepresented. If we were going to do this, it was to bust the door open and bring people to the Met."
Speaking on the potential backlash to her attendance at the Met Gala, the New York representative said, "I think I'm kind of at the point where no matter what I do, if I wake up in the morning, there's going to be someone who has something to say about that. So at the very least, what we should do is act in our integrity and do things with intention and purpose."
James, the founder and creative director of Brother Vellies, also opened up about the design to Vogue, saying, "We can never get too comfortable in our seats at the table once they've been given," she said. "We must always continue to push ourselves, push our colleagues, push the culture and push the country forward."
She added, "Fashion is changing, America is changing. And as far as this theme goes, I think Alexandria and I are a great embodiment of the language fashion needs to consider adding to the general lexicon as we work towards a more sustainable, inclusive, and empowered future."
As PEOPLE previously reported, the annual gala is enforcing a COVID-19 vaccination mandate and mask requirement after being postponed (the 2020 Met Gala was canceled).
"Currently, all attendees at The Met Gala on September 13 must provide proof of full vaccination and will also be expected to wear masks indoors except when eating or drinking," a spokesperson for The Met confirmed to PEOPLE in August. "We will update these guidelines as needed."
The Metropolitan Museum of Art confirmed in April that the annual fashion fete would be back — in two parts.
The museum's next exhibition will include a series of events celebrating American fashion. Part one, titled In America: A Lexicon of Fashion, will debut on Sept. 18, 2021 and run through Sept. 5, 2022 to "celebrate The Costume Institute's 75th anniversary and explore a modern vocabulary of American fashion," the release states.
Part two, In America: An Anthology of Fashion, will open on May 5, 2022 and "will explore the development of American fashion by presenting narratives that relate to the complex and layered histories of those spaces." It will also close on Sept. 5, 2022.
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AOC made a fashion statement at the Met Gala...
In my wildest dream, I couldn't have envisioned this degree of hypocrisy - nor it being celebrated so. She likely has only a single-door freezer.
What hypocrisy? Do you think she owns a 30,000 dollar dress?
She wore it and attended the event to make a rather blunt point.
The ticket to get in following your invitation is somewhere between $30,000 and $35,000 Pretty cool for a Congressperson who, when elected, said she didn't know if she could afford to live in DC.
Designers often self promote by providing high profile women gowns as a way to get their fashion seen by people who can afford pricey.
It's ignorance and hypocrisy to believe that she paid for that ticket or the gown.
That's a stupid joke, not even a joke.
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Typical misogynist ignorant comment.
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Ahhh yes. The type of misogynistic comment we've come to expect from those who don't have a real point. I don't particularly like AOC's politics, but I do have to chuckle when she triggers old white men who don't have a clue how to govern.
I for one find it incredible funny that some folks seem to have a need to assign a racial component or some other such nonsense to a simple difference of opinion.
She's politically extreme and represents a very small portion of Americans with the narrative she's pushing.
Absolutely nothing to do with what color or gender she is.
Nothing
She is an above average looking woman, which doesnt hurt.
She's just a loud loudmouthed self absorbed attention seeking idiot
Comparing a sitting member of the House to a sex worker is not a "simple difference of opinion." It's vulgar.
I would agree.
Is it as vulgar as calling the President of the United States every vile name known to man for 4 years?
We're much closer to agreeing here than your last comment but then it seems like the House if full of loudmouthed self absorbed attention seeking idiots these days. It's what gets elected during populist movements.
I agree but sorry, it is still just an opinion.
Free speech is easy when you agree with it. It only gets hard when you don't.
Yes, it's exactly the same thing and still just an opinion.
Nah, that waddled out of the White House on 1/20/21.
I didn't say they couldn't.
It's not hard calling out misogynistic, bigoted, racist asshats. They make it pretty easy. In this age of Trumpism some wear as a badge of honor.
Projection is fairly easy!
As your postings show us every day.
Kamala won't put up with the competition.
He just described Trump perfectly.
I didn't say you did.
I agree, i call out tools on the left like that everyday. I don't see it as badge of honor, more like a moral imperative.
Don't need to call out the tools on the right here. Plenty of triggered lefties here to do that.
Plenty .....
After donald, the right lost any 'moral imperative'...
Triggered - meaningless bullshit.
The triggered left lost any accurate gauge of "moral imperative" at least five years ago. Some long before that.
So your comment is completely without merit.
Completely
They never had any to begin with.
Only in your mind.
Lol ..... only in your dreams
From the person who's sole purpose here is just to piss people off.
Not even close to true.
Well, maybe in your world but not in reality
Yet your comments say other wise.
Again, only in your perception of reality.
Well, and with some the liberal/progressive gang here but that's to be expected of the triggered.
And once again, nothing but insults...
Nope, i guess one persons observation/opinion is another persons insult. Using your logic i could call almost every one of your responses to me here an insult as well but i haven't.
Skins seem to be getting thinner and thinner every year these days .........
Absolutely disgusting how threads on NT get so friggin' off-topic that Trump seems to be the mainstay for triggering it.
Get off it folks. He's gone - leave him gone.
I agree and I'm sure my friends here do as well
You're the one who brought up trumpturd.
Not worth a penny
Or in some others, the eye of the beer holder!
Ya know something...the next time one of yinz get on a liberal about calling Melania or any conservative woman a whore, slut, prostitute, or whatever, I'm coming back to your comment
It's not like I'm wrong. Just pay me the royalties.
But you are.
you don't deserve a penny for your misogyny and bigotry
If she could only fill out a dress, someone may have noticed.
I'm sure you would prefer someone fluffier ... a MTG type.
That neanderthal ugly skank? She's got bigger balls than the majority of the gop and the alleged conservatives.
As you can see from Post 1.2.4, some here like the school girl look.
That dress requires the show girl look:
Get it?
But no brains
She's got more brains than the majority of the gop and the alleged conservatives.
That's a really ugly dress on that stupid bimbo nobody in comment 1.3.3 Really trashy. Like the majority of whatshisnames supporters.
As we all know the key word is "majority."
More like the stripper pole look you mean . . . .
No Tess, I mean what I said.
I meant what I said. Stripper pole look.
Just don't put words in my mouth!
I never do put words in anyones' mouth. Now on the other hand . . . . .
As Vladimir Lenin might call her: A useful idiot
She is no idiot. Has more brains than any of the alleged conservatives or today's gqp.
Get it? No, my tastes are beyond your hourglass.
Who are the we in that question?
Interesting quote. I was unaware of that one. Most likely because I never studied under professor Anyon.
Our "readers". /s
Very backwards when ignorance is applauded. A new made up word I learned - agnorance - the combination of arrogance and ignorance. Today's gqp, the alleged conservatives and the majority of their supporters.
I never do put words in anyones' mouth.
If any man tries to do that with me, I tell him....unless you have I LOVE YOU tattooed on the head of dick and I am giving you a bj, DO NOT ever put words in my mouth
I'm not accepting the idea of so many teachers teaching from a Marxist perspective?
The longer i walk this earth, the more i realize how overrated "higher" education can be. Especially higher education in education.
Many of you here will take that as a personal dig towards higher education. It's not. Higher education clearly plays an important role in our society but it can be more or less useless and is not "automatic" respect with me. I'm proud of my "higher" education but those diploma's hanging on my wall mean exactly jack-squat until i applied them successfully in the real world. That's where the rubber really meet the road.
It's not just the higher education but what you do with it that really matters.
sorry Paula I gave you the wrong emoji the first time
Personally, I think Andre Damon got it right when he wrote:
'Ocasio-Cortez said she participated in the event to bring America’s financial oligarchy into the “conversation” of addressing social inequality. She told reporters, “When we talk about supporting working families, and we talk about having a fair tax code, oftentimes this conversation is among working and middle-class people amongst themselves, and I think it’s time to bring all classes into the conversation.”'
'This is the “extreme left” of official American politics, whose perspective is to attend galas with billionaires in order to bring them “into the conversation.” Ocasio-Cortez’s appearance was widely and justly ridiculed, driving home to millions of people how completely disenfranchised America’s working class is.'
The US ruling class is based on the worship of Thanatos , which is the worship of Death. The Gala shows that this social class is as oblivious and irrelevant to proletarian life and struggles as was the Court of Louis XIV.
I half agree with your quote. I think it was brilliant for AOC to "enter the lions den" so to speak with her message.
It would be like using the rap genre to critique rap lyrics.
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And what have two, privileged petty-bourgeoisie brats to do with proletarian struggles? Come on, squiggy. Do explain to us how these poster children of the banking/investment/finance class have anything in common with worker struggles. You've made your point. Can you defend it from a classical, Marxian perspective? I doubt it. But hey -- prove me wrong. Otherwise, you can stop misrepresenting and besmirching socialism by false association with their ilk..
AOC = Flaming Narcissist ........ yawn
I
REALLY
DON'T
CARE
DO U?
KNOW!
Apparently you care enough to respond and i care enough to at least call a spade a spade.
I was quoting Amerika's favorite Serbian Barbie Queen.
It's nice to know our neighbors to the north care enough to share their quaint thoughts on the topic.
Gives me warm and fuzzies all over. I mean it really warms the cockles of the heart ....... really!
"Is it as vulgar as calling the President of the United States every vile name known to man for 4 years?"
One has nothing to do with the other. Also, when the shoe fits.
Her one dinner cost more than most American families will pay for food in five to ten years. Her dress probably cost more than most families will pay for clothing in as many years as well and yet she has the temerity to preach to Americans about taxing the rich.
She failed before she even started
I doubt she paid a dime for either and was the invited guest of the dress designer who himself was probably invited to showcase his work.
Ignored by the oblivious.
Someone did, which should make you even more wary if you hadn't already given her a free pass only because she is your type of progressive super-freak.
I posted a photo of my type of 'super-freak' at 1.3.16.
She would have been more effective standing out in front with a sign that said "TAX THE RICH" now she is just a hypocrite.
Bazinga!
Total oblivion to the obvious truth.
Hell I thought she was wearing a Chik-fil-A bag.
You should know by now that no self respecting progressive would eat something from that hideously evangelical conservative conglomerate....../s
You couldn't be more wrong. I happen to love their Spicy Chicken Deluxe. And they have great tea
Absolutely hilarious.
AOC hit with ethics complaint over Met Gala attendance (msn.com)
That's from faux 'news' and the ethics complaint is from some faux alleged conservative group who obviously have no clue about ethics
Nothing hilarious about idiotic assholes, on second thought
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These are the trumpturd scum who filed an ethics complaint against AOC.
American Accountability Foundation
https://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=A2KLfSVOXkNhbUUA6FtXNyoA;_ylu=Y29sbwNiZjEEcG9zAzIEdnRpZAMEc2VjA3Ny/RV=2/RE=1631833806/RO=10/RU=https%3a%2f%2fwww.americanaccountabilityfoundation.com%2fabout/RK=2/RS=7Kelelyal6JMK9JJNVbwWjYl_lM-
Thomas Jones
Founder
Tom Jones previously served as Legislative Director to Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI), Senior Policy Advisor to former Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC), Opposition Research Director for Cruz for President, and President of the 339 Group and the Cannon Research Group, where he conducted research for Fortune 500 companies and political campaigns ranging from presidential to local races.
Matthew Buckham
Founder
Matt Buckham most recently served Donald J. Trump through January 20, 2021 as Special Assistant to the President in the Presidential Personnel Office, where he identified bold conservative leaders for posts throughout the administration. Previously, he served as a legislative aide to former Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC), Senior Advisor to the House Freedom Caucus, and in various positions with conservative non-profit organizations.
They're alleged conservatives who support scummy republicans.
Their bogus complaint on ethics is just that - bogus - coming from whatshisnames supporters - Jones and Buckham - and ethics????????????
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has nothing to 'deal with'.
Perfect dress designer for AOC. A fraud for a fraud.
Good socialist that she is, she didn't wear a mask, while the lowly help did.
Can't wait for her to calling out other people for their privilege after this
Our asshat radicals cosplay the revolution. Actual revolutionaries eat the rich. They don't eat cake with the rich, then declare their virtue by wearing a shirt saying "eat the rich."
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) September 14, 2021
In accordance with New York City mandate, starting today all visitors to The Met ages 12 and older must be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Children younger than 12 must be accompanied by a vaccinated person. Masks are required for all visitors. pic.twitter.com/6T8jg3f68M
— The Metropolitan Museum of Art (@metmuseum) August 19, 2021
Laws for the plebes, but not the AOC's of the world.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez made a statement by wearing the liberals' liberal politics across her ass. Now all those liberal liberals just need to kiss it.
Maybe AOC wants Chuck Schumer's job?
Sounds like you want to kiss it. Pucker up!
What's a liberal liberal - is that a more progressive liberal?
Miss AOC can wear whatever she likes, but that doesn't mean I can't criticize it. It's a beautiful dress but the words detract from the beauty of the dress and the beauty of the woman wearing it. I would have just stuck with the words on the purse and be done with it
Although I dont follow such nonsense , I believe the Met Gala is known every year for outlandish costumes and sometimes political messages.
I think hers fit in pretty well to that context.
I didn't realize that. What was Madonna's political statement?
"My dress at the Met Ball was a political statement as well as a fashion statement," Madonna wrote on Instagram. "The fact that people actually believe a woman is not allowed to express her sexuality and be adventurous past a certain age is proof that we still live in an age-ist and sexist society.
Here is one from 2019
I take it this was an anti-gentrification message.
I wonder what AOC's current net worth is?