Two more buses carrying migrants from Texas arrived in Manhattan on Friday as Mayor Eric Adams said the city would continue to fulfill its “moral and legal obligation” to house asylum seekers.
The buses, which were carrying 89 “individuals and families”, arrived at the Port Authority’s bus station early Friday morning, said the mayor’s office commissioner for immigrant affairs, Manuel Castro.
At least five children were on the buses, the commissioner said. As with previous arrivals, some of the migrants had no intention of going to New York, he noted.
What do you want to know
- Two more buses carrying migrants from Texas arrived at the Port Authority Bus Terminal on Friday, officials said.
- The buses were carrying 89 “individuals and families”, said the commissioner of the mayor’s office for immigrant affairs, Manuel Castro.
- Friday’s asylum seekers joined nearly 5,000 migrants who have entered the city’s homeless reception system since late May, according to the town hall
“We know people whose final destination is not New York, but that includes Florida, Chicago and other destinations that will be difficult for them to reach after arriving in New York,” he said. “But as I have said many times, we are committed to welcoming everyone who has arrived in New York, to providing them with the support they need and to continuing to condemn the government’s treatment of asylum seekers. . [Greg] Abbott.”
Friday’s asylum seekers joined nearly 5,000 migrants who have entered the city’s homeless reception system since late May, according to the town hall. The first bus sent directly to New York from Texas arrived at the Port Authority on August 5.
The city has opened 11 emergency shelters to deal with the growing crisis, Adams said in an interview with NY1’s Pat Kiernan on Friday morning.
Abbott, the mayor said, made no attempt to work with city officials to plan their arrivals.
“This governor did not coordinate. He secretly sent migrants into town, got them to sign documents that clearly some didn’t understand what they were signing, and just sent them to New York without coordination,” Adams said on “Mornings on 1.” . “He specifically targeted New York and Washington, DC”
Many migrants had to endure harsh conditions on their journey to the city, Adams said.
“Sunday morning when I greeted a group of migrants as they entered the city, you know, some of them were hungry, they were put on the bus for 45 hours without food, not enough water, not enough, in some cases, medical care, and that’s really a shame,” he said.
“[But] this city is clear: we have a moral and legal obligation because of our right to housing to ensure that we house every individual who comes to our city and is in need of housing,” he added. . “And we are going to live up to that responsibility, no matter how difficult it is.”
Responding to Adams’ remarks in a statement provided to NY1 on Friday, Abbott’s publicist Renae Eze called the mayor a “hypocrite.”
“He represents a self-proclaimed sanctuary city, but he complains that a few hundred migrants are being bussed into his city,” Eze said. “If the mayor wants a solution to this humanitarian crisis, he should stop complaining and call on President Biden to take immediate action to secure the border – which the president continues to fail to do.”
Castro said on Friday that one of the asylum seekers who arrived at the bus station was “very sick” when he got off the bus. The commissioner’s team was on site early Friday morning to offer resources and assistance to migrants, his office tweeted.
Commissioner @MCastroMOIA and our team were there today at 5am to welcome the next buses of asylum seekers with food, water, clothing, medical and legal assistance. 🗽
Thank you to our amazing community and self-help groups and volunteers for organizing with us today! pic.twitter.com/BL3S4aZcOr
— NYC Immigrant Affairs (@NYCImmigrants) August 12, 2022
“It could be COVID-19. We’re not sure,” Castro said. “We have medical professionals monitoring his situation, doing an assessment. We also have the EMT available to transport this person to the hospital, if needed, but we will continue to support the families when they arrive, and we are concerned about the condition in which they arrive. [in].”
The commissioner also expressed concerns about apparent family separations.
“It looks like families are being separated in Texas,” he said. “And of course there’s a lot of worry about bringing them together, and we’re doing everything we can.”
Asked about the number of migrants expected to arrive in the city this weekend, Castro said he had no details to provide.
“We don’t know when the next buses will arrive, who is on those buses and what condition the families are in. [in],” he said. “This is clearly a political act. It’s disgusting.”
“But we are here to support families as we learn about these buses,” he added. “And as you can see, we’re putting together a team that can respond quickly when we hear these buses approaching New York and coming.”
Additional reporting by Gabriel Lugo Ortiz.
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