The Democratic mayor of New York City said the Big Apple is moving forward on plans to establish a “welcome center” for migrants dropped off in Manhattan on buses from Texas.
Mayor Eric Adams defended the delay in opening up a center that can serve as a one-stop shop for migrants seeking temporary housing, food, and other assistance. Adams told reporters at a press conference Tuesday afternoon that the city was trying to “get it right.” The extent of the center remains unclear, as well as the timeline of completion.
“We want to make sure when we open the site that we’re able to continue the success of managing a large number of those who are seeking asylum or seeking shelter,” said Adams.
Around 7,600 migrants who took state-funded buses from the southern border to New York City are in the city’s shelter program. Adams described migrants dropped off in Manhattan as “asylum-seekers.”
FIRE DEPARTMENT IN TEXAS BORDER COUNTY RECOVERING BODIES OF MIGRANT EVERY DAY
However, a person who illegally crossed the nation’s border and is apprehended by the Border Patrol and then released into the country rather than detained through removal proceedings in court is not required to have sought asylum to be released. Those released may at any time in the yearslong court process make an asylum claim or choose against it.
Immigrant advocate organizations, including the New York Immigration Coalition, have pushed the New York City Council to create a spot at the Port Authority so that when they are dropped off at the transportation hub, they immediately have access to all the resources they may need.
“Folks get off the bus, and they’re welcomed into the Port Authority. People clapping for them, screaming welcome. There’s an intake process right there. They’re asked questions,” said Murad Awawdeh, executive director of NYIC, in an interview with the New Yorker. “‘What’s your name? Are you staying in New York City? Do you have a connection here or do you need shelter?’ There’s a pretty good system of providing folks with medical care if they need it, legal counsel if they want it, and our care packages.
“After we figure out where people are going, we put families together, we put single men together, and we put single women together. We try to figure out their transportation,” Awawdeh added. “For people staying in shelters, there’s intake facilities for families, women, and men that are all separate. The family intake facilities, we had some early issues — you have to prove you’re a family, but people were showing up with nothing but the clothes on their backs and immigration-court papers.”
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In April, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) announced that Texas would use contracted buses and drivers to provide migrants released into the United States from the border with free transportation to Washington, D.C. The move was part political and logistical for how it alleviated pressure on border towns that do not have adequate Greyhound buses to major cities in other parts of the state.
Gov. Doug Ducey (R) followed Abbott’s lead several months later in Arizona. Both states have sent more than 10,000 people to Washington, and Texas expanded its operation to include New York.
The 10,000 people who voluntarily boarded the buses are among more than 1 million people who have been let go from Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody at the border and allowed to remain in the U.S. pending court proceedings. The 1 million are allowed to travel anywhere in the country, though some have opted for the free ride on state-funded buses rather than paying out of pocket for transportation.
