Johnson, along with New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, held a virtual press conference calling for federal support to alleviate the burden on cities struggling to handle the rising number of migrants. "I am proud to stand with Mayor Adams and Mayor Johnston as we come together to advocate for viable solutions to this humanitarian crisis," Johnson said in a joint statement with the other two mayors. "Chicago will always be a welcoming city, but we need collaboration at all levels of government and our federal partners to provide the necessary coordination and resources so that cities like Chicago, Denver and New York have what is needed to do this crucial work.” Chicago officials say that over the Christmas holiday weekend, buses dropped off as many as 500 migrants per day in various locations around the city. The influx adds to more than 15,000 migrants who are already under the city’s care. According to the latest reporting from the New York Times, over the past year New York City has processed more than 150,000 migrants at a cost of $2.4 billion. Last fall, Adams traveled to Mexico to discuss with officials there how to stem the flow of illegal aliens into the U.S. “New York City has begun to see another surge of migrants arriving and we expect this to intensify over the coming days as a result of Texas Governor [Greg] Abbott’s cruel and inhumane politics,” Adams said in the joint statement. “I'm proud to stand with Mayor Johnson and Mayor Johnston and push for more federal support for cities impacted by this growing humanitarian crisis.” Denver has received more than 35,000 migrants over the past year. On Jan. 1, 2024, dozens of migrants protested at the state capitol, demanding work permits and an end to the sweeps of encampments lining the streets. "As Denver continues to see an increase of newcomers arriving in our city, many of whom are families with children who arrive in the middle of the night in below-freezing conditions, it's clear that what the U.S. is currently doing is not working," Johnston said in the statement. "Our cities are working shoulder-to-shoulder to support newcomers, but it's time for the federal government to increase work authorization, create a coordinated entry strategy, and provide more federal dollars to ensure cities can manage this crisis and help newcomers thrive.” The mayors were joined by two other Democratic mayors who sent a letter to President Joe Biden in October requesting $5 billion and a meeting to discuss the impact the crisis was having on their cities.Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is now joining two of his Democratic counterparts in requesting assistance from the federal government to handle the migrant crisis, which is imposing both economic and political costs.
