The majority of immigrants who have arrived in New York seek to apply for asylum in the US, but a large majority cannot afford a lawyer to advise them, according to the results of a survey presented today by the NGO Se Mace Camino.
The “Displaced and Disconnected” survey, the first to be carried out among new arrivals and carried out with interviews with 766 immigrants who are in city shelters, revealed that 93% of them said they could not afford the services of a lawyer who Advise you in your regularization process.
In addition, 97% still do not have the work permit required by the authorities for foreigners, so they have not been able to enter the job market legally, something that has been insistently criticized by Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul. , which attribute this responsibility to the central government.
Both have asked President Joe Biden to speed up the procedures so that New Yorkers can work to alleviate the humanitarian but also financial crisis due to the flow of immigrants to whom they provide shelter, meals and education for children, some services that have cost 1,200 million dollars (1,122 million euros at today’s exchange rate) to the municipal coffers, mainly.
The survey -which brings together a large sample but is not scientific- also indicates that 93% of those consulted cannot leave the shelters because they do not have enough money or a permanent job and due to their legal status they do not meet the requirements for housing bonds.
58% of those interviewed – of which 4 out of ten are under 30 years of age – said they cannot pay medical bills or have access to free health services and 63% do not have access to English classes.
65% of those consulted are Venezuelan -like the majority of those who have arrived with this wave of immigrants- while 14% come from Colombia, 9% from Ecuador and 5% from Peru, among other countries with lower percentages.
The report makes recommendations to the federal government to expedite work permits and expand Temporary Protected Status (TPS) that allows those who qualify to live and work legally in the country without fear of deportation while the process lasts, and permission to travel and return to the country.
The city proposes that 70 million dollars be allocated for immigration legal services, 100 million per year to expand NYC Care, a free or low-cost health program and that housing vouchers be expanded regardless of the immigration status of the bowl.
2023-06-07 01:21:29
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