New York City, a deep blue heartland, is suddenly stepping down from its self-imposed pedestal as a sanctuary city for illegal immigrants. Instead, they’re shifting their approach to shuffle these newcomers down the road to pretty much any other place that will take them. The Twittersphere is having an absolute field day with this unexpected switch.
“Hey, what happened to the sanctuary city pride?” asked many, utterly perplexed by the sudden U-turn of New York. It’s strange to see NYC changing its long-held tune when the consequences of its own policies begin to hit home. Even sports writer Ian Miller chimed in on the matter, expressing his bewilderment on the platform.
As part of the new strategy, New York City has been circulating posters revealing that since April 2022, over 90,000 undocumented immigrants have landed in the city. As pointed out by multiple news outlets, Texas started transporting illegal immigrants to NYC in August 2022.
These eye-opening posters spell out a grim reality: “Living in NYC is the most expensive in the US. Food, transport, and the basics aren’t cheap. And, sorry, we can’t promise shelter and services to all newcomers. So, please, think about another city to settle down in the U.S.”
Mayor Eric Adams went public with this dramatic shift from NYC’s sanctuary city ethos on a Wednesday.
“Sadly, our city is brimming. There’s simply no more room,” Mayor Adams lamented. He also went on to express his frustration at NYC shouldering what should be a national responsibility.
But the city’s move to dissuade incoming immigrants did not go down well with everyone. Brad Lander, NYC’s comptroller, argued that this contradicted the iconic image of New York as a welcoming haven of opportunity, a promise etched at the base of Lady Liberty herself.
Meanwhile, Craig Hughes, a social worker with Mobilization for Justice, slammed the idea of offloading the problem elsewhere as an empty promise.
Anne Williams-Isom, Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services, made a sobering admission back in June. The city had “reached a tipping point. We now have more asylum seekers in our care than longtime New Yorkers in our existing system,” she confessed.
Despite these uncomfortable revelations, conservatives aren’t exactly crying into their coffee.
However, it’s not all smiles and laughs. The small town of Rotterdam in Schenectady County is feeling the pinch as a less publicized part of NYC’s strategy. Local motel residents were unceremoniously ejected to make way for a busload of NYC’s illegal immigrants.
State Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara didn’t mince words when he condemned Mayor Adams for “carelessly sending busloads of migrants to the Super 8 Motel in Rotterdam, displacing those already struggling with poverty in the community. I am utterly incensed by what has unfolded,” he revealed to the Albany Times-Union.
He went on to condemn the “unforgivable disrespect and complete lack of concern” demonstrated by imposing this issue on his community with no notice or communication. He demanded the federal government step in to curb this tumult.
So, as the city of dreams grapples with its own created chaos, we see a glaring lesson – when you open the doors too wide, you might just find the house too full to live in.
