The state of New York is feeling the impact of rampant immigration as it struggles to shelter and process migrants taking advantage of the Biden administration’s open border policy.
What is “illegal” immigration when the federal government is facilitating the entry of migrants into the country? Can one be considered “illegal” when even the condition of their illegality (crossing into the country without permit) is encouraged? One can argue that because the administration is facilitating these entries, the migrants are entering with a permit. This obfuscation of illegality is the point. If the border is open, there can be no wrong.
The outstanding question that will remain is why is this policy being pursued? During an interview with MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle, President Biden recently hinted that it has to do with the economy: America allegedly needs more farmers, despite the its war against them as it contemplates confiscating their land. So we can put that reason to rest. The other reasons are less obvious but they include demographic change and an influx of potential Democratic voters.
The Biden administration has been clandestinely transporting migrants around the country as they await court dates where they are hoping to be granted asylum. Asylum from their countries. What they have yet to figure out, however, is that they are leaving one oppression for another. While they may be experiencing financial hardship and lawlessness, wait until they enter the U.S.
Once they are cleared for free healthcare, an advantage that some U.S. citizens do not have, and are provided the basic amenities they need to survive, it is then they can concentrate on the privilege that minorities do not receive, neither directly nor implicitly. While Hispanic Americans may be leaning more Republican (see here and here), will that sentiment convert to a vote that influences policy. The former president fared better amongst Latinos, but that was still “insignificant,” according to The New York Times. And they’re right. He isn’t the president.
It is hopeful that the migrant can and will assimilate into the American way of being. That hope presupposes “empathy” and not being a fascist bigot. But when considered seriously, there is little reason we have to convince ourselves that people favored by law and civility will not reward its benefactors. Wouldn’t you, and don’t we all? Politics is about interest, and interest is economically demographic. Remember that economics also implies social interaction, who we associate with. America is in an identity war, I do not suppose it is smart to pour oil on troubled waters.
It is unclear how many immigrants have been released into the interior but one recurrent figure is over two million, according to the Center for Immigration Studies.
In January 2022, it was revealed that a federal contractor was working for the Department of Homeland Security to quietly move immigrants into Westchester County. He said that the “government is betraying the American people.” That fact was quickly forgotten about and politicians continued to use the crisis as fodder for riling the public.
But independent New York journalist known as “Leeroy” has been covering the crisis. Footage shows that the U.S. military is involved in processing migrants across the state. He reported seeing multiple bus loads of migrants within a few hour period. As one user aptly noted, the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act “limits the powers of the federal government in the use of federal military personnel to enforce domestic policies within the United States.”
While that act has been amended to cover the branches with the exception of the National Guard, it remains a question what the Navy, Marines, and Air Force were doing here. But immigration is not domestic, it is classified as foreign. What is concerning is not that military personnel are being used for immigration, but that they are obeying and letting them in. Of course the ground soldiers are just following orders…at least there is a process for the exodus.
Let us just document that point to refer to should there ever be criticism for sending troops to secure the border as there is support for leaving it open.
“New arrivals of migrants arrive at the new massive housing facility,” Leeroy writes. “Some state they are from Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, and West Africa. It’s told this massive facility can hold up to 450 people. I spoke with some of the migrants, and most are very friendly but are complaining about food and clothing. They also asked me about finding them work multiple times.”
“[One] of them told me it took him 6 months to get here. He said he has a wife and kid, but his wife and kids are staying at a hotel,” he added.
The migrants are reportedly using a space that previously housed Touro College. But this was not the first location that city officials were looking to use. Mayor Eric Adams was looking to 20 public school gymnasiums, but that plan was halted after parent-led protests, according to the Daily News.
“They are moving away from the school sites for now, but [we] reserve the right to use them again if they can’t handle the influx,” an anonymous city official told the outlet.
Speaking to Leeroy, Council Member Ari Kagan placed the blame of the crisis on the Biden administration.
“There is no permanent solution so far,” Kagan said. “I put the blame squarely on open borders, no questions asked, [and the] Biden administration’s failed policies.”
Schools Chancellor David Banks said that the mayor is in a “tough position” because the immigrants are “continuing to come” and “by law, we’ve got to find places for refuge for them.” New York politicians have championed the state as a “sanctuary city” for years.
The mayor has come out against the crisis as well, saying that “No city should carry this burden. It’s a national problem, and we need a national solution.”
Migrants that were sheltered at Brooklyn P.S. 188 in Coney Island have already been moved to the migrant facility. But while they were at the school, they were videoed signing up for free health insurance.
Leeroy has documented that the military is also stationed at Roosevelt Hotel located on 45 East 45th Street, which is where migrants are being processed.
In a video taken a week ago, Leeroy reports that Middle Eastern migrants have replaced veterans at Crossroads Hotel in Newburgh, New York. He notes that Hispanic and Middle Easterners are housed separately.
