CHICAGO (WGN) — A group of migrants from Texas arrived at Chicago’s Union Station Wednesday night, according to Gov. Greg Abbott. The governor, citing the Biden administration and Chicago’s sanctuary city status, said that the city will now be a drop-off location.
In April, Abbott directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management to charter buses to transport undocumented migrants from Texas to Washington D.C. Earlier in August, he directed that New York City be added as a second drop-off location.
According to the governor’s office, thousands of undocumented migrants have been transported to D.C. and New York City, providing “much-needed relief to Texas’ overwhelmed border communities.”
Abbott cited Chicago’s “Welcoming City Ordinance” as a reason why he selected it as the state’s third drop-off location.
“President Biden’s inaction at our southern border continues putting the lives of Texans — and Americans — at risk and is overwhelming our communities,” said Gov. Abbott in a statement. “To continue providing much-needed relief to our small, overrun border towns, Chicago will join fellow sanctuary cities Washington, D.C. and New York City as an additional drop-off location. Mayor Lightfoot loves to tout the responsibility of her city to welcome all regardless of legal status, and I look forward to seeing this responsibility in action as these migrants receive resources from a sanctuary city with the capacity to serve them.”
Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s office released a statement Wednesday night saying they received approximately 60 migrant. He also described Gov. Abbott’s actions at “racist practices.”
“As a city, we are doing everything we can to ensure these immigrants and their families can receive shelter, food, and most importantly protection,” the statement read, in part. “This is not new; Chicago welcomes hundreds of migrants every year to our city and provides much-needed assistance. Unfortunately, Texas Governor Greg Abbott is without any shame or humanity. But ever since he put these racist practices of expulsion in place, we have been working with our community partners to ready the city to receive these individuals.”