Immigration advocates call on federal, state and city agencies to increase aid for migrants bused from Texas
NEW YORK -- Immigration activists rallied Friday outside City Hall, calling for more support for the hundreds of migrants seeking asylum in New York City.
The New York Immigration Coalition, allies and local leaders demanded more aid for those stepping off the buses from Texas at Port Authority Bus Terminal.
"We're reaching out to our federal government, as well as state and the city, to do things differently and to be coordinated," New York Immigration Coalition Executive Director Murad Awawdeh said at the rally.
Advocates said they understand the difficulty in providing for so many, but stressed the importance of the basics, like food, shelter and clothing.
"There are families -- the parents and the children, babies. So they need diapers, baby formula, clothing, housing of course," said Lorena Kourousias, executive director of Mixteca.
In a sit-down interview with CBS2's Political Reporter Marcia Kramer on Thursday, Gov. Kathy Hochul said with resources already being stretched thin, she is working on several solutions.
"We actually found another pot of money that we think can be deployed to help the situation when they arrive," Hochul told Kramer. "There is some federal money, that's another source of money that I've identified."
The governor said she is also working to make the job process easier for arriving migrants, which activists say could be life-changing.
"I put in a request for there to be some sort of possibly executive action that allows individuals who come here to have the ability to at least get a temporary work permit," she said.
"It's super important to get the job, because it's going to be the way for these migrants to support themselves," Kourousias added.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has been sending migrants to New York and other cities to protest the Biden administration's immigration policies, and officials predict he will continue to send buses until November.