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Roughly 200 migrants at JFK warehouse begin adjustment to NYC life
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Published Jun 9, 2023
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Brittany Kriegstein/Gothamist
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Published Jun 9, 2023
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Mauritanian migrant Ismail Mohamed said he was way too tired last night to hear planes roaring overhead as he slept at an old warehouse on JFK Airport property, the city’s latest shelter option for a continued influx of migrants.
Typing out his thoughts on a translator app from his native Arabic, Mohamed, 32, said he was surprised by the location of the shelter. The city brought him there after a brief, 24-hour stint in an overflowing hotel, he recounted.
“I did not think that I would be near the airport, but there are many arrivals, and that’s why it is difficult to find a good place,” he wrote.
The shelter opened as the city struggles to accommodate tens of thousands of newcomers, many of whom crossed the southern border into the U.S. in an attempt to flee violence and poverty back home. Unlike immigration trends of the past, many of the recent migrants are arriving without any contacts or sponsors in the Big Apple. Some Republican governors of southern states have even coordinated migrants’ relocation to New York and other northern, Democratic cities as a way of sending a message about the border policies.
Despite the odd location — not far from air traffic, cargo warehouses, and even a mail facility for U.S. Customs and Border Protection — Mohamed said the shelter has a “good atmosphere” and has provided the migrants with food and showers. He estimates there are somewhere around 200 men currently at the warehouse, but said it is hard to tell.
He spoke to Gothamist after boarding a Q6 bus with a friend, bound for Jamaica station. He said was hoping to head into Manhattan to buy a jacket and shoes.
The city has made room for more than 70,000 migrants since last spring, exacerbating what Mayor Eric Adams has called a humanitarian emergency in an already-crowded shelter system. About 42,000 migrants remain in the city’s care.
Adams’ administration has been scrambling to house the new arrivals, even opting for school gyms as a potential solution as the school year comes to an end.
The JFK shelter is the latest in a number of drastic measures the city has proposed, and it has garnered heavy opposition from Republicans who claim the facility could put airport safety at risk in the post-9/11 world.
“The decision by the Port Authority to house illegal migrants at JFK Airport poses both a security threat to one of America’s largest transportation hubs and represents the palpable failure of the Biden Administration’s disastrous border policies,” tweeted GOP Rep. Anthony D’Esposito.
D’Esposito, a Republican representing New York's 4th Congressional District, has been an outspoken critic of the plan, even writing a letter to the heads of the Federal Aviation Administration to condemn the move. The letter was co-signed by other Republican members of the New York delegation, including Reps. Elise Stefanik, Marc Molinaro and Nick LaLota.
The Adams administration did not immediately return a request for comment.
As the political drama swirls around the shelter, migrants like Mohamed say they're concerned with day-to-day survival amid the clamor of America’s biggest city. Mohamed said he found his way to the U.S.-Mexico border alone after escaping persecution in Mauritania. He plans to apply for asylum, but says he doesn’t have money for a lawyer at the moment to start the process. Though he worked as an accountant back home, he will have to wait to obtain an American work permit before being able to find a job.
He said settling in over the past few days has been incredibly hard, but he plans to persevere.
“I am a strong man, I will overcome all difficulties,” he said. “Americans are very good people, and I thank them for all the good treatment.”
Tagged
Asylum Seekers
eric adams
immigration
Brittany Kriegstein
Brittany Kriegstein covers all breaking news around New York City, with a focus on crime and gun violence. Got a tip? Email Brittany at [email protected].
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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