Chicago City Wire

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is pointing an accusatory finger at Republican governors across the country for Illinois' growing migrant problems, the Chicago Tribune reported this week.

“It’s wicked," Johnson said. “It’s unconscionable. But as you all know, the city of Chicago is coming together to make sure that people who wish to find real comfort here in the city of Chicago, that we provide that. Now I’m here today because I needed to see it firsthand.”

Johnson spent his first full day in office visiting Chicago government facilities that housed migrants, including a Pilsen police station and Little Village park center. There, he further took Republicans to task who continue to bus asylum-seekers to Chicago.

During his tour, Johnson offered little in the way of concrete solutions to a crisis that shows no signs of slowing. Thousands of additional migrants are expected to arrive in coming weeks as the City continues taking on millions of dollars in new expenses.

As part of his inauguration speech earlier this week, Johnson made it a point of trying to settle tensions about the growing crisis, at one point telling onlookers that “there’s enough room for everyone in the city of Chicago.”

Johnson praised the work of New Life, a nonprofit organization that has helped find housing for the new arrivals, the Tribune reported. The mayor also expressed hope that a new deputy mayor for immigrant, migrant and refugee rights will help bring people together.

Last week, Chicago's previous Mayor Lori Lightfoot declared a state of emergency after seeing 8,000 migrants travel to Chicago since August seeking asylum, many of them in buses from Texas, the Tribune reported. Lightfoot, who lost her bid for reelection, commented that Chicago has “reached a breaking point” with the influx of migrants.

The former mayor's emergency order allows Johnson easier access to emergency funds and also opens the way to request help from the Illinois National Guard, the Tribune reported. But Johnson noted that he has not yet made a decision on whether to ask for National Guard help.