A 2019 letter signed by New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that opposed the MTA's plan at the time to hire 500 more NYPD cops ...
A 2019 letter signed by New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that opposed the MTA's plan at the time to hire 500 more NYPD cops to patrol the subway system has resurfaced, as transit crimes skyrocket and the city grapples with the aftermath of a subway shooting that saw 10 injured this week.
At the time, Ocasio-Cortez and several fellow progressives vehemently opposed an MTA plan to hire new cops to patrol the subways.
Now, the letter is coming under scrutiny following a shooting rampage in a Brooklyn subway left at least 30 injured and caused widespread panic in its wake last week.
'In our view, desperately needed resources would be better invested in subway, bus, maintenance and service improvements,' the letter reads.
'We are urging the MTA to divest from this current model of criminalization.'
The letter claimed that 'communities of color' would be unfairly targeted by the new officers.
At the time, Ocasio-Cortez also shared the letter on Twitter, writing: 'Punishing the poor does not create a safer environment. Instead it threatens the very foundation of our community.
'That is why my New York colleagues and I wrote a letter to [New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo] asking him to help put an end to MTA's dangerous policing policy.'
The letter - which was also signed by Upper West Side Rep. Jerry Nadler and former Bronx Rep. Jose Serrano, as well as State Sens. Michael Gianaris, Luis Sepulveda, Jessica Ramos, Julia Salazar and Alessandra Biaggi - warned of the 'historic racial disparities in enforcement.'
Meanwhile, the number of crimes in the subway has jumped 55 percent from the same period last year, according to data.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks at a press conference about stock trading by members of Congress. Members of Congress Discuss Stock Trading in Washington, DC
The 2019 letter, signed by New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, that opposed the MTA's plan to put 500 more NYPD cops to patrol subway system resurfaced on Saturday
Page two of the letter signed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2019
In 2020, Ocasio-Cortez joined other top progressive Democrats in backing a growing movement to defund police departments in the wake of George Floyd's death.
The congresswoman from the Bronx has voiced support for policy solutions aimed at combating police brutality and racial injustice.
Ocasio-Cortez had said she's 'actively engaged in advocacy' for a 'reduction of our NYPD budget and defunding a $6 billion NYPD budget that costs us books in the hands of our children and costs us very badly needed investment in NYCHA [New York City Housing Authority] and public housing.'
DailyMail.com reached out to Ocasio-Cortez for comment.
As of last week, workday ridership on the subway is still at about 60 percent of what it was before the beginning of the pandemic in March of 2020 with 3.3 million riders using the system.
In March alone, the number of crimes in the subway jumped 55 percent, from the same period last year, according to the latest NYPD statistics. There were 180 crimes reported in March of this year compared to 118 crimes for 2021.
This week to date, there have been 39 transit crimes opposed to 15 the same time last year, making for a whopping 160 percent increase.
There was a nearly 20 percent spike in felony assaults in the week through April 10, and almost a 45 percent increase in overall crime, as well.
Law enforcement officials lead subway shooting suspect Frank R. James, 62, right, away from a police station and into a vehicle, in New York, Wednesday, April 13, 2022
Pictured: New Yorkers on their way to work treat victims of a shooting on the Manhattan bound platform of the 36th Street N, R and D station.36th Street Station shooting in Brooklyn
Meanwhile, ahead of the shooting last week, it was revealed that New York City Mayor Eric Adams had been warned multiple times there were not enough cops on the subway.
Only after 10 people were shot in the most recent attack to rock the city, did Adams vow to double the number of police out patrolling the system.
The mayor pledged to ramp up the uniformed cops out and about as he spoke from Covid isolation.
But it appeared to be too little, too late, as the suspect had been able to blast a carriage full of passengers and make off without cops grabbing him.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during the news conference at Harlem Hospital after the shooting in Harlem on January 21, 2022, in New York
A New York Police Officer of the anti terrorism unit patrols the 36th St. subway station, a day after a shooting incident took place in the Brooklyn borough of New York City
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