A group of Chicago residents protested the city’s ongoing acceptance of thousands of migrants even as local resources are reaching their limits. The move came after a number of elected officials and one Democratic candidate criticized Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s (D) approach to the migrant crisis.
During a Chicago City Council meeting, residents spoke against the city’s plans for the more than 35,000 migrant arrivals. One said that the entry was “junking up our country. And yeah, we feel some kind of way about it because it’s our country. We’re going to get them out of our communities because they don’t deserve to be there.”
“If the crisis is so bad, the city council members who are so concerned should donate their salaries to the cause like a real public servant should,” another resident said.
“What’s happening is they’re emptying out the dregs of their jails into the United States, into our communities,” one resident said.
Black Chicago Resident EXPLODES at City Council Meeting over Migrant Crisis.🔥🔥🔥
“What's happening is they're emptying out the dregs of their jails into the United States, into our communities.” pic.twitter.com/CGhuJWjh6c
— I Meme Therefore I Am 🇺🇸 (@ImMeme0) February 22, 2024
The recent protests are part of a wider series of complaints about the Chicago city government. A number of residents stated that they believe Chicago and the state of Illinois should take care of American citizens before tending to migrants.
Last year a plan to turn a former high school into a migrant shelter received considerable protest from residents of the mostly-Black South Shore area of the city. Following the city’s plans, the residents sued to block the potential site.
The suit called for the South Shore High School to be utilized as a school, rather than a migrant shelter. One of the plaintiffs in the suit argued that the city would “have us foot the bill and hand over our already limited resources, public parks and school buildings that have been unjustly closed in the first place.”
The residents also cited tens of millions of dollars in migrant-related expenses, and called for an audit.
“What the city is telling these young people is that we’re going to take away your extracurricular activities and turn you away into these streets,” said one resident.
