The Chicago City Council recently passed legislation to impound and tow any buses in the city that violate new restrictions concerning the offloading of illegal immigrants from Texas.
The buses will face repercussions if they don’t drop off the unlawful migrants in designated areas or file paperwork with the city to do so.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) has accused the buses, which traveled to the Windy City at the orders of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), of trying to bypass the city’s previous regulations in November 2023 by dropping off illegal immigrants in the middle of traffic in places such as the O’Hare Airport.
Johnson said the buses offloaded the illegal immigrants without contacting Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC).
“We have put these protocols in place because after being bussed thousands of miles, rogue bus operators are dropping new arrivals in Cicero, Rosemont, Schiller Park, and places other than our designated landing zone,” Johnson said in a recent statement.
“This inhumane treatment further endangers the safety and security of asylum seekers, and adds additional strain to city departments, volunteers and mutual aid partners tasked with easing what is already a harsh transition,” the Democratic mayor added.
On Dec. 13, 2023, Chicago impounded its first bus carrying illegal immigrants.
Since August 2022, Chicago has seen an influx of illegal immigrants in the city. This was around the time Abbott began sending unlawful migrants to cities across the U.S.
Of the total immigrants Chicago has encountered, 23,400 came from Texas, according to Abbott. Alongside Texas, cities such as Denver and El Paso have also sent their fair share of migrants to the Windy City.
Chicago, like many cities, has been overwhelmed with illegal immigrants. Johnson’s office recently released a statement detailing the city’s approach to address the surge in migrants, including the opening of 25 shelters.
Watch: Ben Bergquam: Chicago is ‘crumbling’ under flood of illegal immigrants https://t.co/6GxTZOMyXj
— John Solomon (@jsolomonReports) December 13, 2023
“As part of this humanitarian crisis, the City opened 25 temporary shelters across Chicago, including five Chicago Park District locations,” the statement read.
To date, Chicago has seen nearly 600 buses arrive in the city since the summer of 2022, with most of them traveling to the Windy City since May 2023.
