A rumor about permanent residency led over 1,500 migrants to New York City Hall during a hearing about integrating “newcomers.” The majority of the crowd was from the West African nation of Guinea. According to the New York Post, many believed they could obtain work visas or green cards by showing up:
“They told me that they would help me to get a work permit and a green card if I came here today,” Amadou Sara Bah, 44, who got to the US in November from Guinea, explained, adding he wouldn't have come to City Hall just for the hearing.
Instead, authorities let in 250 migrants to discuss racial disparities in immigrant support systems. The city council hoped to learn about the experiences of Black migrants as New York City's housing crisis persists.
A report by the Post in November 2023 found only 2% of the 140,000 migrants who arrived in the Big Apple had applied for work permits.
Other attendees waiting outside claimed that community leaders misled them:
Dial Lochitlio, 19, who got to New York from Guinea just four days ago and said he was seeking asylum, told The Post “elders in the community” told him to come to City Hall for information on work visas and housing.
A few hours later, he was still waiting for information and getting frustrated.
Lochitlio noted that he was unable to follow-up with anyone as he did not have a phone, after being instructed to arrive and await further instructions.
The City Council's Committee of Immigration and Committee on Hospitals held the joint hearing on the experiences of African migrants in shelters to “understand how the [Adams] Administration is addressing language access barriers, cultural competency challenges, health needs, and other roadblocks” that the new arrivals face, a press release said.
A major challenge is the absence of language services for migrants who do not speak English or Spanish.
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