A hostel in Chicago's Greektown neighborhood will soon be home to asylum-seeking migrants, who are moving from police stations into the hospital.
“I think when countries are in crisis and they’re dealing with different stuff it’s important to help other people because you never know what might happen in your own country," employee Mackera Molomangai told NBC Chicago.
An immigrant herself, 20-year-old Mackera supports the humanitarian aide efforts here in the city, and the migrants that will soon call this part of town home.
“It’s easy to make decisions when you’re on the other side, but imagine if the role was switched," she said.
Bridgeport resident Sherry Cruz, who lives near a police district that currently houses migrants, is upset about the process
“You’re not vetting them! You know nothing about these people," said Bridgeport resident Sherry Cruz.
“There’s a tent city with homeless people that live in our own country. Veterans that are out there. People that don’t have a place to live," Cruz explained.
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That message resonated with Gene Vock, who has been without housing for decades,
“What the woman just said is right," Vock said. "They take care of those guys before you take care of us.”
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But for Mackera, both the migrant crisis and the homeless crisis need attention.
“I think you help both, because you can’t necessarily put the migrants on pause," she said. "But you can’t also neglect your own people at the same time.”
34th Ward Ald. Bill Conway is addressing the issue and expressing concern with the lack of notice about the migrant move from Mayor Johnson’s office.
He’s holding a community meeting this Wednesday at Merit School at 5:30pm. All residents are invited.
