Chicago seems intent on replacing Martha’s Vineyard in national headlines about hypocrisy over treatment of border crossers. Bougie, liberal Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts is being widely ridiculed for promptly shipping out some 50 Venezuelan immigrants flown in from Florida. But that’s nothing compared to Chicago, which has boasted of being America’s “most immigrant-friendly city.”
Chicago, according to a local NPR station, is now looking to Central Illinois help to deal with its “overflow of bused immigrants.” Chicago “is reaching out to other cities across Illinois for help as it deals with an influx of migrants bused in by red state governors,” the NPR report says.
“Overflow of bused immigrants”? Really? Estimates for how many immigrants have been bused to Chicago range from just 300 to 1,000. That’s nothing compared to what Chicago should reasonably have expected to receive based on its population when it rolled out its welcome mat and declared itself a sanctuary city.
Of the annual two million migrants arriving annually in America who are seeking asylum, Chicago’s share alone would be 17,000 per year, and that doesn’t count the “gotaways” — illegal border crossers who did not contact authorities to request asylum. Hundreds of thousand of them are likely in the country.
That’s quite a switch for a city so proud when it was named the nation’s most immigrant-friendly city in 2019.
“We are tremendously proud Chicago has been named the most welcoming city in America for immigrants and refugees,” Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in a statement at the time. “This ranking reflects the passionate and dedicated work of countless public officials and community members across our city who have come together to stand up and fight for the rights of our immigrant and refugee communities, no matter the cost.”
Not to worry, though. Gov. JB Pritzker has called up the Illinois National Guard to help Chicago deal with its trauma.