Illinois Councilman Suggests Allowing Residents to Sign Up to Host Migrants
An Illinois councilman suggested that residents in the city of Naperville be allowed to sign up to host migrant families in their homes. Naperville Councilman Josh McBroom suggested during a city council meeting last…
An Illinois councilman suggested that residents in the city of Naperville be allowed to sign up to host migrant families in their homes.
Naperville Councilman Josh McBroom suggested during a city council meeting last week that instead of the city using taxpayer money to help or assist migrant families, a sign-up sheet should be created in order to give families in Naperville the option to host Migrants, according to The Chicago Tribune.
McBroom’s suggestion comes as the city has received six buses full of Migrants since Dec. 21, Linda LaCloche, a spokeswoman for the city, told the outlet.
“We do have a very affluent community,” McBroom said. “A lot of big homes. What I’d like to do is direct staff to create a sign-up sheet for individuals that would be willing to house migrant families. And if there’s people that would do that, God bless them.”
“I think we need to find out who would be willing to house migrant families,” McBroom added.
The city of Naperville was described by McBroom as being a “compassionate community.”
McBroom’s comments come as some suburbs of Chicago, such as Hinsdale, Wilmington, and Joliet have passed ordinances to address the ongoing issue of unscheduled drop-offs of Migrants.
“Before we go down the road of, you know, following suit on some of these other cities are taking action on, my idea would be, let’s find out. Let’s find out who’s willing to help,” McBroom said.
Naperville, which is located roughly 28 miles from Chicago, was rated as the wealthiest city in the Midwest and the 19th wealthiest city in the nation in 2016, by NerdWallet.
At the time, the median household income was reportedly $104,419, while the median home price was $364,300.
Chicago has received more than 30,000 Migrants from the southern border since Aug. 31, 2022, according to city data. Out of this number, 218 are currently sleeping at O’Hare International Airport, 14,241 were reported to be staying in shelters, 11,586 were reported to have been resettled, and roughly 3,967 had been resettled with sponsors.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has sent buses with migrant passengers to cities such as Chicago, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and New York City that have openly accepted the Migrants.