New Footage shows a Chicago police station filled with mattresses and dozens of illegal migrants as the city struggles to house the hundreds of new people who have crossed the border arriving each day.
Chicago officials said they couldn’t afford to rent hotel rooms for the thousands of migrants arriving in their city and lobbied for more federal funds.
Due to the lack of available shelter, some migrants have turned to police stations to find a safe place to sleep.
Videos and photos showed hallways in a Chicago neighborhood littered with mattresses and personal effects with encamped migrants.
Chicago is one of many Democratic-run cities where southern states have bussed in migrants as the US-Mexico border crisis worsens.
Dozens upon dozens of illegal migrants sleep on the floor of a Chicago police station as the city struggles to shelter the hordes of border commuters who arrive daily
Chicago’s migrant housing crisis follows the end last week of the Trump-era COVID-19 border restriction known as Title 42, which allowed US authorities to return migrants to Mexico without giving them the possibility of applying for asylum.
Tens of thousands of people rushed to cross the border illegally into the United States before President Joe Biden implemented a tough new asylum policy to replace Title 42.
In the shocking images released by the photojournalist Rebecca Brannondozens and dozens of migrants are seen sitting on and around fully made-up mattresses at a Chicago police station.
Brannon reported that many migrants slept and ate on the ground, straining law enforcement officers whose daily work was made more difficult by their presence.
Young children were seen running and an alley is filled with litter produced by migrants.
More than 8,000 migrants have arrived in Chicago since August, when southern states began ferrying asylum seekers north. Texas Governor Greg Abbott sent the migrants to help ease the burden on border towns.
“To provide much-needed relief to our overrun border communities, Texas has begun ferrying migrants to sanctuary cities such as your ‘Welcoming City,’ as well as Washington, DC, New York and Philadelphia, with more to come. Until Biden secures the border to stop the influx of mass migration, Texas will continue this necessary program,’ Abbott noted in a letter earlier this month.
Migrants were sent to cities such as Philadelphia and New York, they were also sent to Washington, DC, arriving outside the home of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Migrants are seen sitting on and around fully-made mattresses at a Chicago police station
Children are seen running and playing around the station as migrants wait for instructions on where they will be sent next
Despite the city’s obvious overcrowding problem, new mayor Brandon Johnson, a progressive Democrat who took office on Monday, said in his inauguration speech that in Chicago, “there’s enough room for everyone “.
Earlier in May, Texas Governor Greg Abbott of the GOP restarted his campaign to bus migrants arriving at the Texas border to major Democratic-run cities.
Migrants arrived in Chicago and other Democratic cities such as New York and Philadelphia
Despite Chicago’s obvious overcrowding problem, new mayor Brandon Johnson, a progressive Democrat who took office on Monday, said in his inauguration speech that in Chicago “there’s enough room for everyone.” .
Johnson’s stated commitment to welcoming migrants to Chicago follows his predecessor – Lori Lightfoot’s decision to declare a state of emergency earlier this month, calling migrant arrivals a “humanitarian crisis” and pushing for increased federal aid.
Chicago officials said they expect a $53 million shortfall without additional aid due to the cost of migrant housing.
“It’s May and we haven’t received any funding from FEMA,” Chicago Budget Director Susie Park recently told the city council, according to the Chicago-Sun Times. “The need is great. Lots of requests come in. New York is probably asking for $1 billion. There are many needs.
Brianyerlis Carreno, 10, from Venezuela, holds his 8-month-old brother, Mateo Vargas, outside the Chicago 12th District police station, where video showed migrants living in the hallway
Chicago officials project $53 million budget shortfall due to migrant housing costs
More than 8,000 migrants have arrived in Chicago since bus programs began in August
Like Chicago, New York has seen the arrival of thousands of migrants daily. The city has opened more than 100 centers to house migrants, including closed schools and hotels.
This week, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, also a Democrat, proposed sending migrants to more cities to help ease the burden facing major metropolitan areas.
“We have 108,000 cities, towns, cities,” he said. “If everyone takes a small part of it, and if it’s coordinated at the border to make sure that those who come here to this country legally are actually moved around the country, it’s not a burden for a city.”
Adams also called on the Biden administration to provide additional funding to cities absorbing tens of thousands of illegal migrants.
