Woman brutally beaten on subway platform SLAMS AOC over calls to reduce funding for NYPD

A woman who was brutally beaten while waiting for the subway near JFK Airport in September slammed Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over her desire to reduce funding for the New York Police Department.

Speaking with Fox and Friends on Thursday, Elizabeth Gomes recalled the harrowing incident that left her traumatized and nearly blind in one eye, and suggested that there would only be more victims if Ocasio-Cortez gets her way.



As the New York Post reports, Ocasio-Cortez made her comments about police funding during an appearance on the Daily Show Monday night.

"We are now at a point where officially, most officers are paid more than a teacher with a master's degree serving these same kids involved in these same incidents," she said. "We are defunding safety, defunding our public schools, defunding our public pools, defunding our parks, defunding our libraries."

Ocasio-Cortez went on to suggest that by cutting funding to every department "except the militarized one," it sends a message to New Yorkers about "who and what we care about."

Gomes told Fox and Friends that the funding of police and teachers should not be mutually exclusive, but noted that only one would have saved her.

"I got attacked," Gomes began, "and from lack of police being in the subway station at the time, being defunded at that time, there was no one there to help."

She pointed out that her attacker, 41-year-old serial criminal Waheed Foster, killed his grandmother at age fourteen and "was supposed to have been locked up a long time ago."

Host Steve Doocy asked Gomes what she thought of Ocasio-Cortez's suggestion to give funding earmarked for the NYPD to teachers instead.

"We need both, but safety do come first," Gomes replied. "If you don't make these children safe in school, how would you make them want to go to school?"

"I believe safety comes with police officers," she continued, "and once there's police officers, then people will feel more realistic to go places ... they wouldn't be scared to be on the train station just going to work."

Gomes pointed out that in most cases, people "can't call a teacher" if they need help, and if they're in a situation where violence is imminent, they'll be "praying for police."