The influx of migrants arriving in New York City has been an ongoing crisis that continues to stretch the resources of the metropolis. Mayor Eric Adams gave a stark warning that the consequences of this onslaught would bring destruction to the Big Apple if left unchecked.
The source of the migrant influx has been blamed on Texas Governor Greg Abbott, whose Operation Lone Star has been responsible for busing migrants from the Texas Border to self-declared sanctuary cities, including New York City. Since August 2022, this operation has seen over 35,000 migrants sent to New York City.
Mayor Adams declared this situation a crisis and blamed Governor Abbott’s busing initiative while acknowledging that the federal government contributes to relocating migrants from the border and distributing them among other states.
Yielding no help from the federal government and with growing numbers of migrants arriving in New York City, the mayor noted that every service in the city would take a hit. This population flooded all strained resources such as food, housing, education, health care, and laundry.
In reaction to the Mayor’s criticism, Governor Abbott’s press secretary, Andrew Mahaleris, stated that New York City only has to deal with a fraction of the number of migrants that Texas’ small border communities face daily.
Furthermore, Mahaleris stated the necessity of the operation to provide relief to their border communities. They accused President Biden of mismanaging the immigration situation by flying planeloads of migrants to cities across the country.
To combat this situation, Mayor Adams has converted an emergency respite site in Long Island City into a Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center (HERRC) to house up to 1,000 asylum seekers in time. This brings the city’s total of large-scale humanitarian relief centers to 16.
The number of migrants in the municipality’s care has reached over 112,000, and over 10,100 asylum seekers have come through the city’s intake center since September 2022. Each week, over 2,400 new migrants are entering the city’s care.
Marie Williams-Isom, Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services, notes New York is “barely keeping its head above water” and calls for “expedited work authorization, additional financial support, a federal declaration of emergency, and a national and state-wide decompression strategy” to resolve this emergency.
The situation has spiraled out of control due to the federal government’s neglect and inaction. With over 110,000 migrants arriving since last spring, city services are stretched to the limit.
This crisis will surely affect every community and corner of the city. Without the cooperation and initiative of the federal government, Mayor Eric Adams warns of destruction soon.