Migrants in Chicago were moved out of police stations and into churches throughout the city as part of a new initiative by the city.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) revealed the Unity Initiative, a collaboration between the city and 17 churches to provide migrants with shelter and temporary assistance relating to housing, jobs, or legal help.
The new initiative is funded by $350,000 in private donations from members of the Fish Potter Bolanos Law Firm and costs nothing to taxpayers.
Since Aug. 31, 2022, Chicago has received more than 23,000 migrants, according to city data. Out of this number, 151 people are sleeping at the O’Hare International Airport, 1,033 are sleeping at police stations, and 13,034 are currently staying in shelters.
“The Unity Initiative will prioritize getting pregnant women, children and all of those sleeping outside of police stations or on the floors into temporary housing as quickly as possible through churches all over the city of Chicago,” Johnson said, ABC7 Chicago reported. “There, they will have access to case management and assistance finding permanent housing through the work of our philanthropic partners.”
As part of the initiative, each church will receive about 20 immigrants.
“The model fosters a sense of family support,” Rev. John Zayas, pastor of Grace and Peace Lutheran Church in North Austin, told the Chicago Sun-Times. Zayas reportedly began the program himself over the course of the past year. “It’s not just housing, it’s hope.”
Other churches involved in the initiative include, Life Center Church of God and Christ and the Southwest Side Dunamis Life Church.
This comes days after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) announced $160 million would go towards addressing the ongoing migrant crisis as new arrivals continue to flood the state. Out of this number, $30 million would go towards setting up a large intake, or welcome center in order to handle new arrivals, while $65 million would go to the city of Chicago in order to help create a winterized shelter that could provide housing up to 2,000 people for six months. Another $65 million would go to the services that Illinois provides to migrants waiting for asylum hearings, and work permit processings.