On top of that, Marquez said, space and resources in Dallas are scant.
“We want to serve our communities and we want to welcome all these people,” she said. “But, yeah, that's the worry that we all have: What is going to happen if we are running out of space? I mean, we are out of space already. And they’re still coming.”
Shelters are reportedly over capacity in Dallas and other cities nationwide; last month, the U.S. logged a record number of migrant encounters at the southern border. The immigration court backlog surpassed 3 million cases in November, up from 2 million the year before.
And last week, President Joe Biden’s administration consulted Mexico for help in decreasing border crossings as a thousands-deep migrant caravan approached the U.S.
Marquez’s church serves as a welcoming center that assists immigrants in going anywhere in the country, she said. The challenge really comes when new arrivals lack a solid sponsor. Some will have listed a shelter as their sponsor address, she added: “And when we call them, we have to face the reality that all the shelters right now are being overcrowded, over capacity. So there is no more [space].”
From Marquez’s church in Dallas, many migrants will next be sent to Chicago or Denver, where shelters are also overflowing. Her out-of-state connections have noted how challenging it’s been to receive everyone. Some newcomers even wind up on the streets.
This is a major worry for Marquez, especially given the brutal winter weather in those locales.
When migrants arrive at her Oak Lawn church, they’re often provided with jackets and shoes, she said.
“When you receive … 80 [people], 60, whatever number — but multiply it by three times a week — those resources go fast,” Marquez said.
"It is in our DNA already to receive people." – Associate Pastor Isabel Marquez, OLUMC
tweet this
Gov. Greg Abbott recently boasted in an end-of-year email about the state’s efforts to bus migrants to liberal-led areas across the country. By his estimate, more than 92,600 migrants so far have been shipped to cities including Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
New York City has received more than 33,600 migrants since August 2022, according to Abbott. NYC Mayor Eric Adams announced last week an emergency executive order applying new restrictions on these charter buses.
Adams’ order dictates when and how such transport can enter the Big Apple and drop off immigrants.
“There's a high level of uncertainty as we continue to navigate these crises that we're facing. Governor Abbott has made it clear he wants to destabilize cities and send thousands of migrant and asylum seekers here to the city,” Adams said last Wednesday during a virtual press event with the mayors of Denver and Chicago. “I have to navigate this city out of it.”
Thousands of migrant families in New York City have been ordered to leave their shelters, The Associated Press reported in mid-December. A 22-year-old pregnant woman from Venezuela said she’d received a notice to exit her lodging by Jan. 8, less than 14 days after she was due to give birth.
“We don’t have an escape plan if we can’t rent,” she told the AP in Spanish. “The situation is difficult, even more so with a baby.”
Chicago, meanwhile, recently ditched plans to build migrant tent encampments, according to that city’s local CBS News affiliate. Many asylum seekers had been camping outside of Chicago police stations.
Marquez said she’s learned from people in Chicago and Denver that incoming immigrants need to stay for a couple of weeks at the fire department before accessing a shelter bed. They’ll sleep on the floor and depend on others for food.
Two weeks may seem like a short time for some, but Marquez explained that migrants want to feel human again, to decompress.
Marquez emphasized that seeking asylum is legal and a human right. Migrants sometimes have to wait as long as five years for their immigration court dates, according to NBC-DFW.
Asylum seekers face a one- to three-year waiting period before they can obtain a permit authorizing them to work, according to the DFW Asylum Seeker Housing Network. It’s illegal for them to work during this time, but they’re also not eligible for government assistance.
Anyone who wants to aid Oak Lawn United Methodist Church’s efforts can volunteer and donate items like clothing and shoes, Marquez said. The welcoming center will help big groups two or three times a week.
She also wants people to remember that the U.S. was founded by immigrants: “So it is in our DNA already to receive people.”
