AOC claims pro-life legislation is a 'brutal form of oppression' pushed by men who fear a threat to the 'patriarchy'

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) declared this week that the pro-life movement is concerned only with "owning women" and that conservatives opposed abortion because "it threatens a core element underpinning right-wing ideology: patriarchy."

What did she say?

In two tweets posted Thursday, Ocasio-Cortex wrote, "Abortion bans aren't just about controlling women's bodies. They're about controlling women's sexuality. Owning women." She said that the pro-abortion movement was "about women's power."

The pro-life movement, she argued, was about men trying to subjugate women and not at all about the unborn children.

"When women are in control of their sexuality, it threatens a core element underpinning right-wing ideology: patriarchy," she wrote.

She also called restricting abortion "a brutal form of oppression" and said that pro-life laws were pushed by "religious fundamentalists." The use of the word "brutal" is particularly ironic considering the brutal methods involved in aborting unborn children.

In a tweet later that day, she claimed, "If male politicians could get pregnant, there would be as many Planned Parenthood clinics as there are Post Offices."

What else?

Genuine members of the pro-life movement are motivated by a single factor: Believing that unborn babies are human beings deserving of a fundamental right to life. While many of these people are religious, there are non-religious pro-life advocates too.

While Ocasio-Cortez painted the fight against abortion as a mission of the "patriarchy," many prominent pro-life groups including the March for Life, Live Action, and the Susan B. Anthony List are run by women.

Lila Rose, the founder and and president of Live Action, responded to Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter, saying, "No matter how you spin this, Alexandria, you are advocating for the systemic violence that destroys millions of innocent human lives. Almost 1M children are killed in the womb annually because of fear, coercion, & for many — sexual convenience. This isn't freedom; it's brutality."