On Thursday morning September 8, Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser declared a public emergency in the city of Washington, D.C. This is in response to the migrants that have arrived from Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey over the past few months. Governor Abbott has asked for support from the federal government as millions of migrants have crossed the Texas-Mexican border over the past year.
Mayor Bowser has asked for support from the Biden administration and the Pentagon for National Guard support has been denied assistance. Washington, D.C., just like New York City is overwhelmed by the migrants that have flooded their humanitarian support system and non-profits.
In the emergency meeting, Mayor Bowser said she was disappointed by the lack of response from the Biden administration. She stressed Washington, D.C. was unprepared to handle the arrival of migrants.
The Executive Director of Carecen, an immigration resource center, Abel Nunez said:
“We’re glad to see that the city is putting forth resources to receive immigrants coming from the buses from Texas and Arizona, and we look forward to working with the city to ensure that we can build the best capacity of reception.”
Mayor Bowser said they were setting up $10 million for the operation for supporting the migrants and working to get reimbursed through FEMA.
These are the basic ideas that Washington plans to cover in supporting the migrants:
- Create a program to meet all buses
- Understand the needs of the arriving personnel
- Tailor to the needs of the migrants
- The Office of Migrant services under DHS will provide a reception service, transportation, and meals for arriving migrants
Mayor Bowser did not have an expected date for the start of the new center for migrants. Planning with partnering agencies will begin.
Bowser expects hundreds of more buses will arrive in the future. She also added that the U.S. government needs to outline a plan for the migrants who arrive without citizenship, and the proper paperwork to reside in this country.
More details are expected to come out of this development.
Note: Some information may be incorrect as I was typing the information during the live presentation.
Do you think Washington, D.C. can handle the surge of migrants?