Among these women were Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a 29-year-old progressive Democrat from New York City with strong Puerto Rican roots; Deb Haaland, a 58-year-old Native American single mother from New Mexico; Rashida Tlaib, a 42-year-old attorney from Michigan, daughter of Palestinian immigrants, and one of the first two Muslim women to be elected to the U.S. Congress; and Ilhan Omar, a 37-year old Somali-American, former refugee, and also one of the first two Muslim women to be elected to Congress.
These women were part of the most racially, ethnically, and generationally diverse Congress to be elected in U.S. history. For me, this new Congress marks an important shift in the balance of power. Our country is diversifying. Our beliefs, our values, and our stories are diversifying. Our leadership is diversifying, and I believe that with time, our media will continue to follow suit. In my eyes, this is hope. This is progress.
