CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As many as 1,400 people emigrating to the U.S. from Latin America have arrived in Charlotte, leaving many organizations that assist new families struggling to meet the overwhelming demand.
"Since May, we have had approximately 1,400 individuals that we have helped," José Hernández-Paris, the executive director of the Latin American Coalition, said. "The trend that we have seen is about two adults per child, so their family members are coming to Charlotte, and we're finding ourselves in a situation where our capacity is exceeding the need."
The majority of the migrants, around 740 people, are leaving Venezuela. Of those 740, 468 are adults and 272 are children. The others came from Colombia, Cuba and Nicaragua, Hernández-Paris explained.
Alba Sanchez, the manager of the Latin American Coalition's Immigrant Welcome Center, said about 90% of the migrants are coming to Charlotte through Texas. It's unclear who sent most of them to Charlotte, but many of them say it was a "government official."
However, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has been sending migrants to Democratic-leaning cities on the East Coast since April to put pressure on the Biden administration to secure the Mexican border. Sanchez said some of the migrants were told by Texas officials they were not allowed to stay at the border after a couple of days.
"All they know is that a government official or someone is shipping them out," Hernández-Paris said. "I'm not sure who is paying for it, or who is doing that, but they're shipping them out with absolutely no resources. They're coming with the clothes they have, no food, nothing."
The migrants are making their way to the U.S. for two reasons, Hernández-Paris said: To establish themselves and become American citizens. The second reason is that Charlotte has an immigration court, where migrant families can have their cases heard over claims of citizenship.
Earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security announced that it ended a Trump-era policy that required asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico for hearings in U.S. immigration court. About 70,000 people were subject to the so-called "Remain in Mexico" policy, from January 2019 until January 2021, when President Biden suspended it on his first day in office. Many of those people were allowed to return to the U.S. to pursue their cases during the early months of Biden's presidency.
Hernández-Paris said the Latin American Coalition has partnered with the Alliance of Venezuelans in Charlotte to ask other organizations and Charlotte residents for help assisting these families.
"We already have a challenge with homelessness, we already have a challenge with some of the families that are here," he said. "With that challenge, when the families are coming over and we try to find them shelter or a place where they can stay, places are full."
Hernández-Paris said the Latin American Coalition is "making a call" to leaders in Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and North Carolina, that this is a situation they must address.
"We need help," he said. "We need to increase the capacity to serve families. We have to be proactive so we can manage it in the best possible way."
WCNC Charlotte is committed to reporting on the issues facing the communities we serve. We tell the stories of people working to solve persistent social problems. We examine how problems can be solved or addressed to improve the quality of life and make a positive difference. WCNC Charlotte is seeking solutions for you. Send your tips or questions to newstips@wcnc.com.