#Democratic socialist Jabari Brisport talks anti-capitalism, the Squad with AOC

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jabari Brisport, the Democratic socialist running to represent part of Brooklyn in the state Senate, see themselves as moles “on the inside” for the progressive, anti-capitalism movement, they said in an interview.

Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Brisport, who won the Democratic primary for the state Senate’s 25th district with AOC’s endorsement, made the remarks in a conversation published by Interview Magazine on Tuesday.

“It’s funny, I kind of see myself as, like, a mole on the inside,” Brisport said after discussing how he kept himself focused after winning his primary.

“I felt the same way! I’m a mole. A man on the inside,” AOC responded of how she felt after winning her first primary in 2018 and beyond in terms of her connection to the progressive movement.

“Right? You can just be like, ‘Yo, there’s this vote happening. We need you there. We need your activism. We need the squad coming out to picket and protest, or to make some phone calls or emails.’ You’re one of the first people to get the dirt on what’s happening. Now I get to help all these organizations in a way that I have never been able to before,” Brisport remarked.

The young left-wing upstarts went on to discuss their mutual rejection of capitalism, decrying the “existential havoc” the system underpinning the American economy causes, and their hopes for socialism as an alternative.

“It’s about freeing up people to truly experience all the joys in life by making sure they don’t have to worry about whether or not they’ll be able to keep their home from month to month, or whether or not they’ll be able to pay for health care when they get sick. It’s about freeing people from all the existential havoc that capitalism wreaks on us, and allowing them to truly thrive,” Brisport said.

The two discussed the growth of the progressive movement over the past few years, and how much more they believed they would soon grow.

“It’s remarkable how, in such little time, we’re really starting to grow this movement on a city, state, and federal level. You’re going to be joining other DSA [Democratic Socialists of America] candidates, other people with the principles of Democratic Socialism. What do you think that means for the state, and how do you see this trajectory playing out?” the New York Congresswoman asked the state Senate hopeful.

Brisport answered that a wave of progressive electoral victories was on the horizon.

“I really think we’re about to see a sea change. When you got elected, when Julia Salazar got elected, you were definitely targets for the establishment, and it was easy for them to target you because–” he said before being interrupted.

“There were so few of us,” Ocasio-Cortez quipped.

“Exactly. And now, I don’t know how they’re going to be able to adjust. We are a movement. We’ve always been a movement, but now, with growing power, it’s going to be interesting.”

Speaking about electing more progressives and potential members of “The Squad,” AOC told Brisport that the friendships made during her freshman term in office were “so priceless and immeasurably important.”

“It’s kind of growing into a family,” the Democratic socialist said of her fellow “Squad” members, “Honestly, I don’t even know if I would have been able to survive my first year, politically and emotionally, without them. Those relationships for me go so far beyond politics.”

“A lot of people call each other friends in politics, and they’re not, or it’s incredibly transactional. To have this unconditional love that we’ve had has been so important…Take full advantage of those bonds because it’s what will help you survive. It’s what will help you thrive.”