According to New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Democrat Governor Jared Polis of Colorado has plans to send migrants that have arrived in his state to many other major cities across the United States.
The Colorado Governor explained the plan to send migrants to other cities was in response to the asylum seekers trying to reach their final destinations and not to overburden major cities. However since the major winter snow storm across the country over the holidays, many flights and travel plans were canceled and Colorado is catching up with the backlog of people seeking to travel out of the state.
In a recent radio interview, Mayor Adams said “we were notified yesterday that the governor of Colorado is now stating that they are going to be sending migrants to places like New York and Chicago. This is just unfair for local governments to have to take on this national obligation.”
Many large cities throughout the country are experiencing a surge in migrants and are struggling to provide services for all those who have fled from South American looking to be granted asylum. In Denver, more than 3,500 migrants have arrived just in the past month with many seeking services from the state and shelter at night.
The Denver Mayor, Michael Hancock, has declared a state of emergency in response to the influx of migrants and sought help from local Catholic archdiocese for humanitarian assistance. The local Denver government estimates 70 percent of the migrants that have arrived are seeking to travel elsewhere and they have offered to pay for tickets to travel.
Governor Polis has announced a partnership with local governments and nonprofit groups to increase transportation accessibility for asylum seekers looking to travel out of Colorado.
In a recent statement, Mayor Hancock said, “I appreciate [Polis] and the State for leaning in to support those coming to our city to reach their preferred destinations, and to help reduce the number of people in our shelters and more quickly connect them with community supports and other options. I’ve talked with other mayors around the country and we’re united in our call for Congress to work with the Biden Administration to provide the assistance we need to manage this situation.”
New York City has seen 30,000 asylum seekers since spring which has stretched the city’s social service infrastructure to the maximum and according to Mayor Adams, “no city should have to make a decisions if they’re going to provide for their citizens — particularly coming out of Covid — or if they’re going to deal with an onslaught of migrants and asylum seekers.”