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AOC's 'Red Light District' plagued by crime as Democrat

who helped her rise to power says she 'disappeared'
By Michael Dorgan Fox News
Published December 3, 2024 11:00am EST

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Democrat who helped AOC's first election win says socialist lawmaker has abandoned Queens neighborhood Subscribe
A Democrat official who helped Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's historic first election win says the lawmaker has abandoned her constituents in Queens.

More From Fox News

A Democrat who helped Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez build support before her
official
historic first election win told Fox News Digital that the lawmaker has abandoned and
"betrayed" her constituents in a Queens neighborhood that has been riddled with crime
under her leadership, including open-air prostitution, robberies and petty crime.

Some constituents have likened conditions along Roosevelt Avenue to those of a Third
World country, while others say the migrant women soliciting sex in front of businesses Universal Orlando closes popular
portion of Florida theme park due
remind them of a red-light district in Bangkok .
to extreme temperatures

The area has garnered national attention for its unsanitary nature where illegal vendors
overtake sidewalks selling unregulated food, secondhand clothing and other counterfeit
merchandise.

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Ramon Ramirez Baez, an author and former Democrat Committeeman for the 39th
Assembly District, said the quality of life has rapidly deteriorated there since Ocasio-
ortez sprang an historic upset in 2018, unseating longtime Democrat Congressman Joe
Crowley to become the nation’s youngest congresswoman.

DEMOCRAT POL CHASED AWAY IN AOC'S 'RED LIGHT' DISTRICT AFTER BACKING
POLICE CRACKDOWN ON OPEN-AIR PROSTITUTION Coast Guard suspends search for
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Ramon Ramirez Baez, a former Democrat Committeeman for the 39th Assembly District, pictured with Rep. Alexandria Texas day care worker allegedly
Ocasio-Cortez, clothes and merchandise on a sidewalk in Ocasio-Cortez's district, top right; a sex worker in Ocasio-
left; kicked toddlers more than 100
district, bottom right. (Ramirez Baez, left, Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital, right. ) times, stood on their hands as
punishment

He said the then unknown

political novice had been a fresh face on the scene who
promised to work hard for the people of Corona, Jackson Heights and Elmhurst, and to be
an on-the-ground presence for them, unlike career politician Crowley, who at that point
was a 10-term incumbent and eyeing to be the next House Speaker.
Houston man accused of killing
Ocasio-Cortez, Ramirez Baez said, reached out to him for help when she had about mother and 2-year-old girl found
$39,000 in the bank, compared to Crowley’s nearly $2 million war chest. sleeping in apartment with dead
victims

Ramirez Baez, who is well-connected in the area, particularly among his fellow Dominican Promoted
immigrants, introduced Ocasio-Cortez to many business owners, campaigned with her and
even forked out the cash to pay for a venue for them to both debate in, he said. The move
proved crucial in swaying the local electorate as Crowley never turned up, and Ramirez
Baez said it swang the momentum to Ocasio-Cortez.

"Ipaid for that debate, I have an invoice for everything I did for Ms. Alexandria," a
7 sleeping solutions for overnight
frustrated Ramirez Baez said, waving a document to the camera. He said he has all his guests just in time for the holidays
expenses from her campaign documented in one of the many books he has written about
her.
Your Money
But since Ocasio-Cortez rose to power, Ramirez Baez said she has been missing in action FHFA announces
higher mortgage loan
and has acted no differently from Crowley. limits for 2025

"We never saw that lady, never, she disappeared," he told Fox News Digital. "She [didn’t] do
anything for the community, nothing, nothing."

"She disappeared from my community. You never saw Alexandria in my community,

nobody saw her in her office. All the time closed," he said of her Queens office, which was
located a block from his own apartment.

Rivera said locals don't know how to get in touch with her office as she doesn't appear to
have any in Queens. Ocasio-Cortez's website lists an office in Queens, by appointment
only, which is the same address as the office of New York City Councilwoman Tiffany
Caban.

"What happened? You have to be [in the] community to do an event. She never did any
event. never saw Alexandria come to do a town hall meeting, to listen to the community,
I

nothing. She disappeared."

"She goes all over the place, like a movie star, she goes to Texas, all over the place, but
what about the community?"

Rivera said Ocasio-Cortez did hold a town hall in the neighborhood in May 2023, but since
then, crime, particularly prostitution, has exploded and she has not engaged with the
community on those matters. He said the rally was extremely limited and residents had to
apply to attend, with her office denying entry to those it deemed as hostile to her positions,
even other local Democrats who told Fox News Digital they too were denied entry.

Ocasio-Cortez spoke at a rally in support of illegal vendors a few months later and quickly
left before questions could be asked, he said.

WATCH: New York City street lined with prostitutes

soliciting sex

Ramirez Baez, who said he did not know about Ocasio-Cortez's socialist leanings at the
time, said he has buyer's remorse about pushing their community to back her.

" If she said to me she

socialist, I would never support it ," Ramirez Baez declared. He
is
said that part of her socialist agenda is an open-border policy with regard to immigration,
which he opined has contributed to the decline of the neighborhood as many illegal
vendors and sex workers on Roosevelt Avenue are migrants who have no jobs or work
permits and also clog up resources.

"She only defends the socialist agenda, which is not for the American people. . She . .

doesn’t understand what [socialism] means," said Ramirez Baez, who added that he
understands it as he has lived in Cuba and the former Soviet Union. "She was a little
confused in her head, confused in that ideology.

"The Democrats opened people that nobody knows have come. the border, and a lot of
Alexandria was in Texas [saying] ‘Come on, people from New York have the money,’ and
that’s why right now you have that situation in our neighborhood."

Ramon Ramirez Baez and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at a debate in 2018. (Provided by Ramon Ramirez Baez)

STATE TROOPERS, NYPD DESCEND ON AOC'S 'RED LIGHT' NEIGHBORHOOD TO CLAMP

DOWN ON RAMPANT PROSTITUTION, CRIME
He told Fox News Digital he voted for President-elect Trump this year and told residents of
his neighborhood to do the same, even though he remains a lifelong Democrat.

"The American country is for the law, it’s for people who are working."

Commenting on how she dethroned Crowley, Ramirez Baez said that Ocasio-Cortez
embraced social media to connect with young people.

Ramirez Baez said Ocasio-Cortez hugged him and cried when she won, saying she would
never forget him because he was like a brother to her. He said he responded by saying,
"Ms. Alexandria, don’t worry, all need from you is to do the best for my community.’" I

Fox News Digital reached out to Ocasio-Cortez's office for comment in relation to Ramirez
Baez but did not receive a response.

Ramirez Baez has been busy trying to clean up Roosevelt Avenue and founded a group
called "Let's Improve Roosevelt Ave," which advocates for more police on the ground. That
request eventually materialized last month when the mayor and governor deployed more
than 200 police officers and state troopers to patrol the troubled neighborhood .

He said that on several occasions he called on Ocasio-Cortez – as well as other local

progressives – to rally behind him and other activists, but she ignored his pleas.

Several blocks in Squad member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s district in Queens have been known to be lined with scantily
clad migrant prostitutes who offer their illegal services 24 hours a day. (Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)

Ramirez Baez even penned a damning open letter to Ocasio-Cortez last month and said he
has yet to get a response from her.

"I remember you questioningthe integrity of other politicians and their promises. My
support and collaboration helped you secure your victory. I believed you would champion
the best interests of our community, I was wrong," Ramirez Baez wrote in the Oct. 23
letter.

"Watching your career unfold, saw you more focused on staying in the spotlight and I

getting media attention than on real issues facing your constituents. While you travel
across the country, and engage in various performances, our community continues to
struggle. Your appearance in high-fashion attire stands in stark contrast to the hardships
our hard-working people endure."

Inthe letter, Ramirez Baez said he feels compelled to apologize to the community for
endorsing her in 2018.

Read Ramon Ramirez Baez's letter to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. App users CLICK
HERE

"Roosevelt Avenue has become a hub for brothels outnumbering bodegas. It is an

. . .

urban crime zone Yet, you advocate for the legalization of prostitution and anti-police
.

policies. You ignore the fact that over 70 brothels operate near local schools and houses
of worship. You have failed to even speak about the crime that affects our neighborhood
and you failed to protect the vulnerable women exploited by these criminal networks."

On one block along Roosevelt Avenue, Fox News Digital cameras recorded a line of no
fewer than 19 suspected sex workers on a sidewalk in September. Around the corner,
there were at least seven more, and a woman on the next block was witnessed soliciting
sex for $60. Some brothels have been known to reopen even after being raided by police.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"Your version socialism has been a farce. You have never delivered for your community.
of
While you campaign for others throughout the country you don’t see the severe damage
your misguided positions have done to our community and your political party," Ramirez
Baez continued.

"Have you reviewed the polls of how many Latinos are defecting from the Democratic
Party because of the radical policies you espouse?" Ramirez Baez asked. "Take a look at
Roosevelt Avenue, breathe our air and see your failures."

Michael Dorgan is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business.

You can send tips to [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @M_Dorgan.
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Conversation 300 Comments 9K Viewing

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Sort by Best
21 People typing View 142 new comments
?what?
1 hour ago
AOC about emotion and virtue signaling. She criticizes almost everything, yet has no solutions
is all or
lternatives. She appeals to the part of the electorate that is about feelings and appearance. She is
and lacks the intellectual capacity and work ethic to actually solve problems.
The...
See more
Reply 32 Share
newsguy62
14 minutes ago
...but give her credit that after killing the Amazon deal she said 'now we can give the tax credits and
they offered Amazon to the citizens'.
Reply 1 Share
watchingusfail
7 minutes ago
You mean illegals.
Reply 3 Share

SuperSecretPossum
1 minute ago
You mean she can Launder the Tax Credits and vacation in Hawaii and fund her next campaign.
Reply Share

deklin007
10 minutes ago
Folks, this is no surprise.

All AOC does is complain and do make up TikTok’s.

Like all Progressives, she is too impressed with her Title and Benefits of Office.

The people in her district reelected her in a landslide.

Let’em rot.
No sympathy.
Reply 1 Share
BobbyMacC8
5 minutes ago
How does this person keep getting elected???
Reply Share

patriot4evr1776
5 minutes ago
And yet the Democrat party is already throwing her name out to run for President in 2028?!
Reply Share
Stedyek142
2 minutes ago
She would have no chance running for president. She is a mini Harris.
Reply 1 Share

mudslide962
15 minutes ago
She’s a bartender…he district can’t think…at least not with the brain.
Reply 2 Share

noleftsneeded
2 minutes ago
AOC has taken a page out of Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s playbook. That page says “say whatever you
ant, promise everything, protest against everything, do nothing”. Both of these politicians are worthless
representatives to their constituents. Neither one has the intellect, knowledge or desir... See more
Reply 1 Share

rePortbuilder2
1 minute ago
Her rise to power parallels Hitler's method of promising many great things. Her body language even
imic's his. Hitler knew how to play to people's emotions. So does AOC. Look out for her. She is bad

Reply Share

Fox_ShadowBanned_My_Last_ID
58 seconds ago
Like most socialists once she figured out how feed at the government trough she privately
to abandoned
socialist beliefs in favor of expanding her bank balance...
Reply Share

TheRestorationofAmericaBeginsNow
1 hour ago
Yet, she just won reelection from her community. Every 2 years they reelect her. Someone explain this.
Reply 39 Share
laidbackinthekeys
27 minutes ago
Einstein's definition of insanity... doing the same
thing over and over again and expecting a different
Dems seem to fall into this cycle quite often.
Reply 5 Share

Hypocritebusta
23 minutes ago
Her constituents aren’t that bright!!
Reply 8 Share
fourputt017
5 minutes ago
Understatement . The vast majority of the district doesn't speak English and has no clue what's going
around them.
Reply Share

beldarofremulak
6 minutes ago
Inner city democrat politics is very simple. You pay them for their votes.
Reply Share
beldarofremulak
1minute ago
You think I'm kidding? They have voter rolls. They approach the voters and offer them, say, $50, if

wins.
Reply Share

roadhouse99
6 minutes ago
The only way the Democrats can rise to respectability again is to purge the party of all progressives and
ject the 'Squad" from the party and make them sit as independents. America sent you a strong
are you listening?
Reply Share

bigfootakadarryl
4 minutes ago
She wins with less then 17% of the eligible voters, this guy propped her up for the image and got her
to push his radical agenda knowing this district does not vote so it would not take much to win.
Reply Share

DoubleOhSeven
3 minutes ago
Handouts. Lots of them.
Reply Share

mytwosenseworth
1 hour ago
And yet they’re keeping her in office. I can’t see where they have any room to complain.
Reply 14 Share
billb1952
46 minutes ago
She just got re-elected AGAIN four weeks ago....
Reply 8 Share

cattails
1 hour ago
You elected her and now you need to live in the squallor of the conditions she represents. This time AOC
never get out from under! Can't think of anyone more deserving.
Reply 13 Share
fourputt017
3 minutes ago
The vast majority of the district doesn't speak English and has no clue what's going on around them.
Reply Share

pdehemann1
1 hour ago
Yet they keep voting for her!?!
Reply 30 Share
ek-idaho
1 hour ago
My exact thought, they keep her around then whine?
Reply 9 Share

packinapud
27 minutes ago
It is not WHO is voting (if they really are voting), rather it is who is Counting the "votes".
Reply 2 Share

1deplorableguy
3 minutes ago
About 20% of the electorate vote in Queens and they're all hard core liberals, the other 80% don't care on
or the other.

Reply Share

mytwosenseworth
1 hour ago
So much better than Amazon providing thousands of 6 digit jobs. Good going, AOC.
Reply 12 Share
doloreshaze
1 hour ago
It is pretty amazing that afreshman congress person, in office for just a few weeks, has the power to
a deal five years in the making with just a couple of tweets!

Except, that’s not what happened. Amazon, the richest company in the world, was looking for billions in
to open a fa...
See more
Reply 1 8 Share
1 reply

chiefsbrat
1 hour ago
He gave someone the monetary backing and introductions who had absolutely zero experience in
egislation, government, or community work. Since her first election she has, as a darling of the Left, had
campaign financing to do very little work and end up on the ballot with a big fat D next to he...
See more
Reply 7 Share
1 reply

Timeaftertimenomore
23 minutes ago
ALL local politicians should be FORCED live their DISTRICT, FULL to in TIME. There is no need for local
officials to travel ANYWHERE on taxpayer money.
Reply 5 Share

Ladio
1 hour ago
You all voted for her..reap the consequences.
Reply 18 Share

FROSTY493
1 hour ago
Just think, you could have had real Amazon jobs and tax base in your neighborhood. . but no. . . .

Reply 10 Share
beldarofremulak
3 minutes ago
Know how to break up an angry BLM mob about to break down the doors of stores?
Drive up in a Job Fair RV.
Reply Share

Show More Comments

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