AOC says US should be treating all refugees the way the world is treating Ukrainian refugees

• AOC said there is a difference in the way Ukrainian refugees are being treated compared to others.
• She said the US should treat all refugees the way the world is treating Ukrainian refugees.

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the US should be treating all refugees in the same way Ukrainian refugees are being treated worldwide.

"I think the world is watching and many immigrants and refugees are watching, and how the world treats Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees should be how we are treating all refugees in the United States," Ocasio-Cortez told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow on Tuesday night.

Ocasio-Cortez said there was a stark difference between the treatment of Ukrainian refugees compared to how Syrian refugees were treated not that long ago.

"The way the world treated Syrian refugees versus the way the world is greeting Ukrainian refugees is a very stark contrast. I think the way we are looking at immediate granting of TPS (temporary protected status) which is what we need to be doing, as well as many others, is something that we need to keep in mind," she said.

Ocasio-Cortez added that other migrants did not get that same treatment, citing thousands of people who have been turned away at the US-Mexico border, as well as Haitian migrants.

"We really need to make sure that when we talk about accepting refugees that we are meaning it for everybody, no matter where you come from," she said.

The congresswoman added this could also be an opportunity to create a pathway to citizenship for people who are granted temporary protected status.

"While there is a risk, there is also profound opportunity for us to make the crooked path straight on this issue," Ocasio-Cortez said.