At a news conference Tuesday afternoon on Daley Plaza, immigrant rights groups demanded that more be done to support migrants arriving in Chicago.
“They are looking for safe, dignified housing; they are looking for work and to put food on the table,” said Juan Pablo Herrera from Palenque LSNA.
But the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights said what is needed most is money, which has yet to materialize so far.
“The federal government needs to stand up. Joe Biden needs to stand up and Congress needs to stand up,” said Diego Samayoa of Centro Romano.
Dozens of groups have been working with the more than 18,000 migrants who have come to Chicago from the Southern border states over the past year.
The Brighton Park Neighborhood Council connects many with wrap-around services, including those provided by the City of Chicago.
“Without the proper investment in these services, there is only so much we can do,” said Esmerelda Alarcon.
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The ICIRR wants to coordinate immediate and short-term care for new arrivals. While it praised the Department of Homeland Security’s re-classification of Venezuelan nationals for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), it wants to see the process streamlined. That way, the coalition said, migrants will be better able to receive TPS and work permits, allowing them to work, find longer-term housing and become self-sufficient.
But the increasing numbers of migrants are putting stress on the city’s ability to house and care for them. It is also causing tension in neighborhoods like Galewood, where late Monday night the Brandon Johnson administration paused plans to turn Amundsen Park into a migrant shelter.
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Tuesday morning, 29th Ward Ald. Chris Taliaferro thanked his constituents for speaking out against the proposed shelter on Monday. He said that may have affected the mayor’s decision on the shelter. Taliaferro has also proposed another commercial building as an alternative.
The Immigrant rights groups rallying on the plaza Tuesday also say Johnson should come up with another plan that doesn’t involve tent cities, like the one floated in recent weeks.
“We are looking for single shelters that are primarily brick and mortar to provide the proper shelter,” Alarcon said.
Shelter plans will be needed as more migrants arrive and temperatures start to drop.
