Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has infuriated conservatives by announcing that the state will be using some taxpayer funds to help refugees.
The Rental Assistance Program
The governor said: “We have taken some of the programs that have pre-existed the crisis and adjusted them to help with the migrant crisis. Let me give you one example – our rental assistance program. We have provided some of that rental assistance money, which wasn’t originally intended to be about asylum seekers, for this challenge.”
The Democratic National Convention
Journalist Margaret Brennan asked Pritzker if Chicago could handle the 2024 Democratic National Convention given the current influx of refugees into the city. In response, he said: “I am confident that we can handle it.”
A Collective Effort
Pritzker continued, stating that Chicago’s ability to “handle it” would depend on assistance from the federal government. “But again, it will require help from the federal government and someone needs to work in Texas with these border politicians to have them stop sending people only to blue cities and blue states,” he said, going on to add that the entire country needs to work together to help refugees.
Representative Kevin Schmidt
Representative Kevin Schmidt criticized Pritzker, seemingly claiming he brought the crisis upon himself by having empathy for other human beings. “The Democrats in Illinois have kind of made this problem on their own by making Illinois a sanctuary state,” he said.
Someone Else’s Backyard
Schmidt continued: “You have got a lot of liberal elites that are in favor of certain ideologies and policies but whenever it hits home and they see it in person, it’s a little different world then. They don’t want that in their backyard. They want it in someone else’s, which is pretty typical for a liberal elitist.”
An Individualistic Mindset
Schmidt was clearly stuck in a very individualistic mindset, not understanding that a collective effort is required – and always has been – to address the refugee crisis. Pritzker wasn’t trying to move the problem to “someone else’s backyard.” He was trying to convey that a national effort is needed to help refugees, something Democrats like him have always been aware of.
The Internet’s Response
News of Pritzker’s words was shared across the internet and people flocked to comment sections to give their views. One commenter said: “If they are going to come to Illinois – and they should – then they should get work permits, eventual status, and the state should get the federal funds the border states get for that. I’m all game for them to come here. I want them to be able to work though.”
A Very Good Point
Another person said: “Hundreds of years of deliberate destabilization, exploitation, and oppression in the global south – combined with the effects of climate change – has resulted in an environment where the risk of death and the hardship of traveling hundreds or thousands of miles to be a stranger in a strange land is worth it because the people are so desperate for survival. We created the conditions for this. This is blowback from our own policies.”
Illegal Human Trafficking
One commenter attempted to put Pritzker’s words into simple terms. They said: “Translation for the right-wingers – ‘the federal government needs to step in and stop the right-wingers from engaging in illegal and immoral human trafficking.’”
Let People Work
Replying to the aforementioned commenter, another person wrote: “They also need to expedite the employment authorization process. If you let people work, they’ll be able to actually support themselves.”
Waiting Months to Work
The commenter continued: “As it stands now, people show up and have to wait months before filing for employment authorization even if they apply for asylum – not to mention that you have to pay a fee or submit a waiver that may or may not be granted. Oh, and we’re expecting people to just know this or find a volunteer to help them out.”
Proving What We Already Knew
Another person wrote: “If we spread the asylum seekers out, we have plenty of space and resources for them. Sending them all to blue cities is never going to work. Seems like Republicans think it’s proving some kind of hypocrisy among Democrats but it’s not. It’s proving what we already knew – that the entire country needs to help.”
A Properly Run Federal Government
Others called for a more competent federal government: “The people crossing for work or asylum should not be treated this badly by both Texas and the federal government. If we had a properly run federal government, there would be a plan in place to actually spread them through all the states with federal funding.”
The Federal Funding
Another commenter wrote: “Texas alone has space for 8 billion people. They can build more homes. If the government gives them federal funding to take care of immigrants – which it does – then Texas should start actually taking care of immigrants instead of bussing them elsewhere.”
Walls, Prisons, and Violence
Others speculated about a terrifyingly bleak future: “When climate migration gets into full swing, these people are gonna have no ideas beyond authoritarian ones… are they? Walls, prisons, and violence until the end.”
Redistribute the Federal Funding
Another person said: “Tell you what, let Texas and Florida give up some of the federal funds they are getting. Sending immigrants to other states means they don’t need all the federal money they are getting and it should be turned over to the states that they have been bussing the migrants to.”
Asylum Is Legal
One person pointed out a flaw in the argument of many conservatives: “Many of the immigrants coming in are seeking asylum. Conservative Republicans continue to claim that they just want immigrants to come ‘legally.’ Asylum is legal. So, in reality, they really just don’t want ‘those people.’”
Discussion and Debate
Plenty of people engaged in debate. “And so the Democrat dystopia begins. In blue cities, at least. This is what they want for the whole of the United States,” one person said. “What you’re failing to realize is that if the refugees were spread out across ‘the whole of the United States,’ there wouldn’t be a crisis and you’d hardly notice,” another hit back.
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