Reducing the shelter limitations for asylum seekers is being advocated by a politician in New York City, which would undermine Mayor Eric Adams’ attempts to manage the influx of migrants that is overwhelming the Big Apple.
On April 18, 2024, Manhattan Democrat Gale Brewer introduced a resolution asking the municipal Council to support a state law that would eliminate shelter stay limitations and let asylum seekers stay in a municipal shelter for as long as necessary.
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“These are working families. They’re not interested in handouts. They’re interested in working,” Brewer stated in a recent interview with reporters.
As per the present policy of the mayor, families are allowed to stay for 60 days, however, single migrants are removed from their site every 30 days.
They are free to reapply for a bed after their allotted period has passed, but placement at the same location is not guaranteed.
Sponsored by Queens Assemblymember Catalina Cruz and Manhattan state Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, the proposed state legislation would prohibit any constraints of this kind from being placed on government entities, including local governments like New York City.
The caps have been dubbed “cruel” and “counterproductive” by the MPs.
However, the Adams administration has hailed the program as a huge success in handling the over 190,000 migrants who have poured into New York City since the spring of 2022.
According to City Hall, the timeframe gives families and employees of the city a deadline to move their loved ones out of the city’s custody as quickly as possible.
In March, about half of the migrant families who had been in the city’s shelter system were said to have left because of the constraints.
The resolution’s sponsor, Brewer, said that staying will benefit the Big Apple in the long term by allowing them to contribute to the economy after they are permitted to work.
“In many cases, these families will be helpful to the city of New York as soon as they get their working papers,” she remarked.
“Instead of moving them around, I would love to see them get some support, get their working papers, help them get apartments, and get on their feet. Because I think that’s what is most helpful to them and to us.”
