Ocasio-Cortez gets judged by an unfair standard

And while this will come as old news to many Latinos, Asian-Americans, African-Americans and Native Americans, the standards for white people are often lower than they are for others. And white males often have the easiest ride of all.

The first time I learned this lesson, I was a college freshman staring at a roomful of my fellow Harvard Latinos and seeing a familiar pattern -- light skin, high GPAs and a limited ability to speak Spanish. The university apparently didn't want to take chances, so it skimmed the cream and played it safe.

The lesson is reinforced whenever I apply for a job, don't get it, and then watch it get filled by a white male whose resume is paltry compared to mine. Or when I see white males on cable TV "fail up" -- getting raises and promotions, even with lagging ratings -- when the people of color whom I know in media don't have that experience.

Now Ocasio-Cortez has learned a similar lesson. Ever since her Democratic primary victory last June, everyone has gotten on her case. She is criticized for her tweets, her comments, her clothes, her tactics, her tone, her politics, her beliefs, even her dance moves back in college.

Republicans who championed Sarah Palin say Ocasio-Cortez is just not very smart, and those who supported Donald Trump insist she gets her facts wrong. Democrats who voted for Joe Biden criticize the congresswoman for saying the wrong thing, and those who supported Hillary Clinton complain that she has difficulty telling the truth.

Welcome to the political version of The Twilight Zone.

Ocasio-Cortez is sharp, so she gets the joke. When Anderson Cooper pressed her on "60 Minutes" about whether she thought it was important to be "factually correct," she didn't flinch.

"It's absolutely important," she said. "And whenever I make a mistake. I say, 'OK, this was clumsy.' and then I restate what my point was. But it's -- it's not the same thing as -- as the president lying about immigrants. It's not the same thing, at all."

Good for her. This rock star obviously has no interest in being anyone's pinata.

As for getting facts straight, perhaps it's best that we -- to borrow a phrase -- take Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez seriously but not literally.

That's still a thing, right?

========

Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com. His daily podcast, "Navarrette Nation," is available through every podcast app.