(NewsNation) — Major cities’ mayors pleaded for federal assistance as migrants have begun to flood homeless shelters, putting a strain on resources.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the city has received about 2,800 migrants seeking asylum. Many were directed to New York City by the federal government, but some were directed by Arizona and Texas. Adams said the homeless services system is already overburdened and the city needs help.
“We need not the only federal government, we need some of those states that have been given people one-way tickets, we need them to understand that this must be a partnership in this country to deal with those who are coming here seeking asylum,” Adams said. “New York is going to do its share, but we have an overburdened shelter system now.”
New York City has a city ordinance in place called “right to shelter” which means that anybody who is seeking a roof over their heads who doesn’t have one is entitled to one. Adams says in order to hold up the ordinance, federal help is necessary.
Adams’s words echo what Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said earlier this week.
Bowser said the decision by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to ship thousands of undocumented immigrants who recently crossed the border from Texas to the nation’s capital has made the situation worse.
Bowser appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation” and admitted that it’s a “very significant issue,” and called on the federal government to get more involved as she believes migrants are being “tricked” into traveling to the nation’s capital.
“We have for sure called on the federal government to work across state lines to prevent people from really being tricked into getting on buses. We think they’re largely asylum seekers who are going to final destinations that are not Washington, D.C.,” Bowser said. “I worked with the White House to make sure that FEMA provided a grant to a local organizations that is providing services to folks. But, I fear that they’re being tricked into nationwide bus trips when their final destinations are places all over the United States of America.”
In June, the Texas Division of Emergency Management said the state had spent more than $5 million sending people to D.C.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s June monthly report revealed more than 200,000 border crossings — which included a record number of terrorist sightings as well as over 15,000 unaccompanied children.
