Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Image by Getty Images

New York Democratic Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez compared in a tweet Sunday members of the migrant caravan trying to enter the United States to Jews leaving Germany during the Holocaust.

She made the comparison to illustrate her point that “asking to be considered a refugee & applying for status isn’t a crime.”

She used three examples, including one about Nazi Germany: “It wasn’t for Jewish families fleeing Germany. It wasn’t for targeted families fleeing Rwanda. It wasn’t for communities fleeing war-torn Syria. And it isn’t for those fleeing violence in Central America.”

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Asking to be considered a refugee & applying for status isn’t a crime.

It wasn’t for Jewish families fleeing Germany.
It wasn’t for targeted families fleeing Rwanda.
It wasn’t for communities fleeing war-torn Syria.
And it isn’t for those fleeing violence in Central America. https://t.co/qhv7Rr1itn

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) November 25, 2018

Her comment comes in response to the escalated tensions at the U.S.-Mexico border. On Sunday afternoon, hundreds of people tried to run past a Mexican police blockade toward the San Diego border crossing, the New York Times reported. After shutting down both border entry points, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency fired tear gas at the migrants.

Alyssa Fisher is a news writer at the Forward. Email her at [email protected], or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher

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