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Home/News/6th bus of people seeking asylum in United States arrives at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia
6th bus of people seeking asylum in United States arrives at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia
Alley EinsteinDecember 6, 2022
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — A sixth bus carrying people seeking asylum in the US, including children, arrived in Philadelphia Monday morning.
About 52 people were on the bus from Texas, which stopped at the 30th Street station just before 6 a.m
People could be seen hugging after getting off the bus.
Approximately 32 people from the group were placed on a SEPTA bus and taken to a welcoming facility in North Philadelphia.
Philadelphia's Bureau of Emergency Management said officials in Texas are still refusing to coordinate with the city on the buses.
Philly welcomes asylum seekers
Last Wednesday, 49 people arrived in Philadelphia from Del Rio, Texas, including seven children.
"Thank God we're here. Everyone here helped us and treated us well. Thank God we're in this country," said Gary, a 28-year-old man from Nicaragua, who was on the bus last week.
The group of 49 were taken to a welcoming facility on E. Luzerne Street in North Philadelphia, officials said.
"You have everything in there. They have food, they have medicine, they have clothing," said volunteer Nancy Pesantez from Ecuador.
ALSO SEE: 2 More Buses Carrying Texas Asylum Seekers Arrive at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia
Volunteers who are also immigrants themselves understand the grueling process and have worked hard to make families comfortable.
"Some difficult things I heard were, 'I haven't showered in a week. I haven't brushed my teeth in days. I'm cold. I'm tired. Can I lie down?'" Heidi Roux shared with Immigrant rights action in Bucks County.
Some traveled two months on foot and by bus, eventually making it to Philadelphia to meet with relatives.
"They all have great stories about their journey that I wish people could hear because it really humanizes the experience of what they're going through, what they're fleeing from and why they're here," Roux said.
The first bus with 28 passengers arrived on Wednesday November 16th. A second bus followed on Monday November 21 with 46 people. On Friday, November 25, two buses carrying 71 people arrived in Philadelphia.
Each time several groups of volunteers were waiting for their arrival.
At the time of the first bus's arrival in Philadelphia, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, released a statement criticizing the Biden administration's border policies and saying Texas was "overwhelmed by the historic influx of migrants."
Abbott said Texas will continue to add more shelter cities as drop-off locations "until the Biden administration does its job and provides sustainable border security to Texas and the American people."
Mayor Jim Kenney condemned Abbott's remarks, saying in a statement: "It is truly disgusting to hear today that Governor Abbott and his administration are continuing their willfully cruel policies of using immigrant families – including women and children – as pawns in order to distort his." Shamelessly pushing politics agenda."
Texas has taken more than 300 busloads of migrants to the streets since April, sometimes five in a day, on unannounced trips to cities like New York, Chicago and Washington, DC. The trips have cost Texas about $26 million, according to Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Department of Emergency Management.
The City of Philadelphia's Office of Immigrant Affairs (OIA) and the Mayor's Fund for Philadelphia created the Philadelphia Welcoming Fund to provide opportunities for Philadelphia residents to contribute to local efforts to welcome immigrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers arriving in Philadelphia.
City officials stress that monetary donations are the best way to help arriving migrants.
Funds raised from the Welcome Fund will be donated to nonprofit organizations in the Philadelphia area that support newcomers.
https://6abc.com/asylum-seekers-bus-arrives-in-philadelphia-30th-street-station-migrant/12527475/ 6th bus of people seeking asylum in United States arrives at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia
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