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AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

The GW Hatchet

Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

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D.C. Council votes to create office to support bused migrants

University+President+Thomas+LeBlanc+and+three+other+local+college+presidents+announced+their+support+for+D.C.+statehood+ahead+of+a+congressional+hearing+on+the+issue+Thursday.
File Photo by Arielle Bader
University President Thomas LeBlanc and three other local college presidents announced their support for D.C. statehood ahead of a congressional hearing on the issue Thursday.

The D.C. Council voted unanimously to approve the creation of the Office of Migrant Services Tuesday, which will provide short-term assistance for migrants who have been bused to D.C. from Texas and Arizona after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.

Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office wrote the Migrant Services and Supports Emergency Act of 2022, which authorizes the use of $10 million to establish the office within the D.C. Office of Human Services and provide asylum-seekers in the District with food, shelter, clothing, transportation and legal services. Bowser declared a public emergency and proposed forming the office three weeks ago in response to Governors Greg Abbott, R-TX and Doug Ducey, R-AZ, sending about 9,400 migrants from their states to D.C. since April.

“This is a new challenge for D.C., but I feel confident that if we lead with our values, and if we put the right systems in place – which we are doing with the Office of Migrant Services, then we will lead a response that makes our community proud,” Bowser said in a statement.

Republican governors have bused and flown migrants who have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border to liberal bastions across the United States in a political stunt to draw attention to migrant crossings.

Bowser previously said the influx of asylum seekers in the District was a “growing humanitarian crisis” when she requested the U.S. Department of Defense activate the D.C. National Guard twice and was denied both times. Bowser said D.C. will be seeking reimbursement for funding the new office from the federal government through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“Regardless of the federal response — which I think has been lacking in some respects — that the District of Columbia would continue to work with partners to advance what we need and ensure our systems in D.C. are not broken by a crisis that is certainly not of our making,” Bowser said in a press conference earlier this month.

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About the Contributor
Grace Chinowsky, Senior News Editor
Grace Chinowsky is a junior majoring in journalism and mass communication from Seattle, Washington. She leads the News section as The Hatchet's 2023-2024 senior news editor, and previously served as the assistant news editor for the Metro beat.
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