“Jagmeet, you just killed her right in front of me!” US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez screamed after witnessing Canadian NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh kill a fellow game opponent during a round of Among Us.
The two elected representatives met for the first time after Singh invited Ocasio-Cortez to join him in a live stream playing the popular online multiplayer video game Among Us. Singh wanted to use the live stream to reach out to young people to speak on minimum wage and student debt.
Between committing grisly murders and finishing tasks as their video game characters, the two representatives had conversations about the importance of universal PharmaCare—something they are both very passionate about—and compared the two countries’ responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The stream was scheduled to last for three hours, but as the night went on and important conversations were had, the stream finally ended after five and a half hours.
During the game, Singh referred to himself and Ocasio-Cortez as the “dream team” when they were both imposters for one round.
After they won the round, Singh exclaimed, “Jagmeet and AOC victory! In the future—this is prophetic—AOC president, Jagmeet prime minister. Victory right here!”
Singh’s stream, joined by famous video game streamers, at one point had over 26,000 consecutive viewers.
The official Among Us Twitter account even tweeted out “I can’t believe our game will destroy US-Canadian relations oops.” However, this didn’t end up happening.
The New York district representative used the live stream to help fundraise for local food pantries, eviction defence legal aid, and community support organizations in the United States.
Her goal to raise $50,000 was quickly surpassed. By the end of the almost six-hour live stream, she had raised $200,000. She later tweeted out saying “We did it!”
Singh ended the night by thanking Ocasio-Cortez for joining him in the stream, and saying he hopes they can continue having conversations in the future.
“It was awesome chatting with you about how we can build a better world. In Canada, things aren’t perfect and we face many of the same challenges. But, together we can do better,” Singh said.
