Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) vowed to avoid Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) days after the far-right lawmaker said she felt “threatened” by him.
“My next move is to stay as far away from her as possible,” Bowman told New York Magazine in an interview published on Sunday.
Bowman, a member of the far-left “squad” of House lawmakers, got into a shouting match with Greene outside the Capitol Building last week that the Georgia Republican said left her feeling “concerned” and “threatened.”
“On the Capitol steps yesterday, he was the one that approached me … yelling, shouting, raising his voice. He was aggressive – his physical mannerisms are aggressive,” Greene said during a press conference last week.
“I think there’s a lot of concern about Jamaal Bowman. So, and, I am concerned about it. I feel threatened by him,” she continued, adding that “he’s someone that people should watch.”
Last week, Bowman denounced Greene’s concerns as racist tropes that have now put a “target” on his back.
“Marjorie Taylor Greene at her press conference this morning said something incredibly dangerous and incredibly reckless about me, talking about my demeanor as being aggressive and saying that she feels intimidated by me,” said Bowman.
”Unfortunately, this country has a history of characterizing black men who are outspoken, who stand their ground and who push back as being threatening or intimidating. So, she’s not even using a dog whistle. She’s using a bullhorn to put a target on my back to the people that she refers to as MAGA people out there who might want to cause harm,” he added.
In his interview with New York Magazine, Bowman called his exchange with Greene and other public debates with lawmakers, including Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), all part of him being authentic to himself.
“You’re just seeing Jamaal Bowman authentically be himself. The Black male educator, husband and father of three, trying to work with others to change the world, you know?” Bowman said.
“I like talking to people, I like debating people. I like learning from people. And I think it’s through the process of dialogue and debate, in learning, that we build a better country and better world,” he added.