In the USA, the exploding number of refugees is one of the most controversial election campaign issues. In addition to the Republicans, more and more affected Democrats are now demanding more financial support and tougher laws.
Anyone who has been to major US cities recently, such as New York, Philadelphia or San Francisco, could not have overlooked the development: long queues are forming in front of the emergency shelters there, including families with children. Hundreds of people are camping on the streets at the entrances to the immigration authorities. On Randall’s Island in Manhattan, huge white tents, each with 600 beds, form a village of their own.
What could also be seen: protests against refugees, for example on Staten Island, in the conservative part of New York.
“Close the border!” is written on the sign of a demonstrator who joined a protest against the construction of refugee shelters on Staten Island (New York). The New York district has a large conservative electorate.
© Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Democrats also feel let down by their president
New York’s Democratic Mayor Eric Adams
© Mark J. Sullivan / DPA
Their common message to the White House: We feel let down.
The issue of migration was at the top of the list for the US President at the beginning of this year, not least because the numbers are so dramatic: 2.5 million people came across the southern border in 2023, mainly from Venezuela, African countries, China – in December there were sometimes more than 10,000 per day, a new record. Many of them are put on buses by Texas’ Republican Governor Greg Abbott and sent to cities run by Democrats, often without any winter clothing.