“I think Mayor Brandon Johnson is taking the right position and maintaining the history and the legacy of being a welcoming city for immigrants from all over,” García said. “The city hasn’t received enough funding. There is money needed for food, for shelter and other support services, mental health services. We’re working in Washington to get more aid to Chicago from the . It is needed and warranted, and Chicago isn’t alone.
“We’re urging the White House to act,” García said. “We’re urging them to get FEMA to recognize the extraordinary circumstances and to respond. If people have the ability to work at a time when the economy is begging for additional workers, it advances our economic interests. It’s good for the migrants and it’s less of a burden on government, including local state and federal government going back with the federal support.
“We’re not forgetting about the 11 million or so people, who include Dreamers or DACA status holders, farm workers,” García said. “We tried to pass two bills in Congress … that would provide a pathway to citizenship for them. At the very least they want — and I think deserve — an opportunity to work peacefully and to contribute to the economy even more.”
“We are in dialogue with the governor, with legislative leaders as well, trying to get at whether or not the analysis that was done may have been overestimated or inflated and whether there is a lower true cost associated that would enable us to reach a better place in this,” García said. “But community groups feel very strongly that this is an important fight to win and that people should have access to health care.