NYC Mayor Adams says city is ‘overburdened’ from ‘surge of asylum seekers’ 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a press conference on Tuesday that the stream of undocumented immigrants has been a “real burden” on public services in New York and also general safety.

“This is a real burden on New Yorkers as we’re trying to do the right thing. We already have an overburdened shelter system. So now we’re talking about food, clothing, school. This is going to impact our schools because we do not turn away individuals because they are undocumented,” Adams said, according to the National Review.

“Translation services. There is just a whole host of things that this is going to produce,” he added, referring to the expected negative externalities from the surge of asylum seekers arriving in the city. “We need help.”

Adams went onto say that nearly 3,000 migrants have arrived in New York, and he has also requested federal aid to help manage the situation.

Adams made his case reading from a pre-written statement, in which he said: “Currently, New York City is experiencing a marked increase in the number of asylum seekers who are arriving from Latin America and other regions. In some instances, families are arriving on buses sent by the Texas and Arizona governments, while in other cases, it appears that individuals are being sent by the federal government.” 

Whilst Adams did note that the rise in migrants had been a “real burden” on the city’s resources, he went onto say that New York would assume responsibility for the migrants and that they would taken care of under his watch.

“If we do not get these urgently needed resources, we may struggle to provide the proper level of support our clients deserve, while also facing challenges as we serve both a rapidly growing shelter population and new clients who are seeking asylum. We are calling on the federal government to partner with New York City as we help asylum seekers navigate this process, and to provide financial and technical resources.”

A tweet from a year ago was shared by several users and conservative commentators on Twitter where Adams stated that New York would embrace immigrants.

“New York is, and has always been, a City of immigrants. We are a destination for diversity and a place where people from every nation seek refuge, raise families, and enrich our communities. Under my administration, our government will reflect that,” Adams said in the Tweet.

In July, New York’s supreme court rejected a bill called “Our City, Our Vote,” which would allow undocumented immigrants to vote.