NEW YORK – The first buses of a new anticipated influx of asylum seekers arrived at the Port Authority’s bus terminal early Monday, with thousands more expected to flood a New York City shelter system already grappling with its refugee crisis for decades.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many immigrants from the US border with Mexico arrived on Monday. At least two buses were seen, but Mayor Eric Adams warned of an increase as the public health rule, Title 42, is lifted within 48 hours.
Title 42 allows federal officials to prevent asylum seekers from entering the country during public health emergencies. The Trump administration invoked it during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but with that threat fading, or at least becoming more endemic, a federal appeals court has paved the way for ending it assuming no action is taken. further legal action.
Adams called on the federal government a day ago to handle the load, calling for plans to move migrants to other cities, allow them to work and send aid to metropolitan areas that “have borne the brunt of this crisis.”
New York City says it has received more than 31,000 asylum seekers, putting a strain on its already overwhelmed reception system. As of Thursday, the latest day for which data was available, the census of shelters in the five municipalities stood at just under 65,000. That represents a 42 percent year-over-year increase, an increase of about 19,000 people, city data shows.
And the situation should escalate.
“We’ve been told in no uncertain terms that, starting today, we should expect an influx of buses coming from the border and that more than 1,000 more asylum seekers will be arriving in New York City each week,” Adams said Sunday, though he he did not disclose the source of that information.
IMMIGRATION CRISIS
The federal government is sending asylum seekers to New York City in hopes of a better life, but the system has left many stranded and stranded.
“Our requests for assistance have been largely ignored,” he said. “And while the New York federal delegation has repeatedly supported sending funds to New York City, many in Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, have refused to lift a finger.”
A coalition of red states, including Texas, want Title 42 upheld.
Since April, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has bused thousands of immigrants to New York and Washington. Arizona Governor Doug Ducey, another Republican, followed suit shortly thereafter.
The New York City Council is expected to meet later Monday to discuss its response to the crisis.
