(CMC) – New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday announced additional policies to help Caribbean and other asylum seekers in the city’s care move out of shelter and create critically needed space for arriving families with children seeking asylum.
Many of the asylum seekers are Cuban, Haitian and Venezuelan nationals.
Adams said the city has made every effort to continue serving the more than 90,000 asylum seekers who have arrived in New York City since last spring.
But, with an average of 300-500 people still arriving each day, and more than 54,800 migrants still in the city’s care, he said New York City is at capacity, having responded in the absence of state or federal action.
In the coming days, the mayor said the city will begin providing 60 days’ notice to adult asylum seekers to find alternative housing paired with intensified casework services to help adult asylum seekers explore other housing options and take the next step in their journey.
Adams said each asylum seeker given notice will have multiple touchpoints with case workers over their 60 days to discuss their options and plan their next steps.
The city also announced new flyers to combat misinformation at the border and inform asylum seekers that the city cannot continue to support the level of service it has been providing.
“New York City has done more than any other level of government to address this national crisis, providing shelter, food, services, and much more to more than 90,000 asylum seekers since last spring,” said Mayor Adams.
“With more than 54,800 asylum seekers still currently in our care, this effort will intensify adult asylum seekers’ casework services over the next two months to help them take the next step on their journey and ensure we have a bed to place children and families at night,” he added. “For more than a year now, New York City has responded to this crisis alone — we need our state and federal partners to step up.”
Adams said this effort will begin in the coming weeks, starting with asylum seekers who have been in the city’s care for a significant amount of time.
He said asylum seekers will receive their notice of 60 days and intensified casework services on a rolling basis.
Adult asylum seekers who do not find alternative housing by the time their 60 days are complete will be required to reapply for a new placement at the arrival centre, the mayor said.
“With the number of families with children in the city’s care continuing to increase, this policy will also create critically needed space for all families with children in need of shelter,” he said.
Since this humanitarian crisis began, Adams said the city has taken “fast and urgent action,” opening more than 185 emergency shelters, including 13 other large-scale humanitarian relief centres already; standing up navigation centres to connect asylum seekers with critical resources; enrolling thousands of children in public schools through Project Open Arms; announcing the launch of the Asylum Application Help Center to help migrants with their asylum applications; and more.
Earlier this spring, the city released “The Road Forward: A Blueprint to Address New York City’s Response to the Asylum Seeker Crisis,” detailing how the city will continue to manage the influx of asylum seekers and advocate for support from federal and state partners.
