How it started: On October 5, 2017, Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill, SB 54, that makes California a “sanctuary state.” Los Angeles followed in 2019, declaring itself a “city of sanctuary.”
The first busloads of migrants arrived in Los Angeles from Texas Wednesday in what Mayor Karen Bass called a “despicable stunt” by Lone Star State Gov. Greg Abbott.About 40 migrants that appeared to be families from Latin America and Haiti were seen getting off two buses as they headed to St. Anthony’s Croatian Church, Fox 11 reported.Abbott, in a statement, insisted Texas officials were sending migrants where they want to go, noting Los Angeles is a “self-declared sanctuary city.”
Jorge-Mario Cabrera, director of communications for immigrant rights group CHIRLA, is all worked-up about the move by Abbott.
The migrants made a stop at Union Station before being taken to a welcoming center at a nearby church.Cabrera was at Union Station when the group arrived. He said CHIRLA, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights-Los Angeles, had been tipped off Tuesday night about the migrants’ pending arrival. He said the travelers originated from Venezuela, Guatemala and Honduras, with two of African descent.One of the Guatemalan migrants has a court date scheduled in New York, he added.“That’s where the cruelty of this process is unbounded,” he said. “That’s why Los Angeles made sure that we were coordinated and prepared to deal with the human beings behind this political charade.”
Why are the mayor and the area’s immigration activists angered, as Los Angles had declared itself to be a sanctuary city? In contrast, California’s Governor says he will make the immigrants ‘safe and welcomed.‘
…California Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state “is in close communication with the County and City of Los Angeles, and our community partners. Together, we will make sure that the children and families who arrived are safe and welcomed.”
I suspect the dream of America these immigrants had and the realities they experience will be quite different.
There are, by the latest count, more than 11,000 people living in RVs across Los Angeles County. And that number has been rising. The Covid-19 pandemic forced more people into poverty. Some of the RV dwellers have jobs but either don’t want to pay apartment rent, or can’t afford to pay it, in a city where the average one-bedroom apartment costs around $2,500 a month.A huge homeless camp will be cleared after neighbors sued. What happens to its vulnerable residents is an open questionSome RV dwellers own the vehicles, but others rent them to the monthly tune of a few hundred dollars to more than $1,000, city Councilwoman Traci Park told CNN.In Los Angeles, you are allowed to sleep in a vehicle on some streets. There are, of course, parking restrictions on many streets. But as the number of RVs has grown, enforcing those restrictions has become harder. Large, immobile RVs require large tow trucks. And, according to the city, destroying a dilapidated RV that might contain harmful chemicals can cost up to $9,000 per vehicle.
While Los Angeles immigration activists are having an attack of the vapors and clutching their pearls, many Americans across the country support Texas forcing Los Angeles to live up to its moralistic proclamations.
I hope that the Los Angeles officials and Newsom are planning for more immigrants. I have a feeling more will be coming.
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