The roughly 50 migrants flown to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts by Florida’s governor this week were taken to a military base Friday to receive shelter and humanitarian aid, officials said.
The migrants were voluntarily transferred to Joint Base Cape Cod, said Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, who added that he was activating up to 125 members of the National Guard to help with the relief effort.
The migrants were brought to Martha’s Vineyard on Wednesday, sent by Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis in one of the latest in a series of moves by Republican governors to transport migrants to northern liberal enclaves to protest inadequate federal efforts to security of the southern border. . DeSantis’ move was roundly condemned by the White House, immigrant advocates and Democratic officials.
At a church where immigrants have been staying on Martha’s Vineyard, immigrants cheered Friday morning when they heard the Massachusetts government would give them sanctuary at a Cape Cod military base.
They hugged each other and locals before boarding state and local government-provided buses for their trip to the base.
A volunteer helping the migrants was among those who hugged and cried as they left.
“This was another person’s – many people’s – very difficult time in their lives, and they shared it with us with such grace and affection and humor. And to welcome me into their lives and hearts was a gift,” said Lisa Belcastro.
A group of civil rights lawyers working with the migrants said their stories were “heartbreaking – and infuriating”. Many of the migrants went to hospital in need of treatment upon their arrival on the island on Wednesday.
Some of those immigrants were sent to Martha’s Vineyard, even though immigration hearings are scheduled not close to Massachusetts, the group said. Immigrants released from state custody often move to other US cities as they go through immigration procedures.
“This cowardly political stunt has put our clients at risk,” the group Lawyers for Civil Rights said in a press release Friday. “Some now have immigration hearings as early as Monday thousands of miles away.”
Some lawyers from the group accompanied the migrants on buses headed to the Cape Cod base.
Joint Base Cape Cod — already an emergency shelter designated by the state emergency management agency — is set up to provide “a safe temporary accommodation appropriate to the needs of families and individuals,” the governor’s office said in a statement .
Immigrants “will be housed in dormitory-style spaces at JBCC, with separate spaces to accommodate both individuals and families,” and families will not be separated, the statement said.
They will have access to services including legal, health care, food, hygiene kits and crisis counseling, according to Baker’s office.
Baker, a Republican, praised a temporary shelter set up by the Martha’s Vineyard community for immigrants in “a moment of emergency.”
“We are grateful to the providers, volunteers and local officials who have stepped up to Martha’s Vineyard over the past few days to provide immediate services to these individuals,” Baker said in a news release.
DeSantis’ decision to arrange for immigrants to flee to Massachusetts was one of two high-profile moves sent north by southern Republican governors this week. On Thursday, two busloads of immigrants sent from Texas by Gov. Greg Abbott arrived outside Vice President Kamala Harris’ residence in the nation’s capital.
Texas began transporting immigrants to Washington this spring. Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey followed suit this year, and the two states have since sent thousands of immigrants to Washington. Abbott has expanded the Texas effort to include New York and Chicago.
The White House on Thursday denounced this week’s moves by DeSantis and Abbott. White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre accused the governors of using immigrants as “political pawns” and said their actions amounted to a “cruel, premeditated political stunt.”
U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Rachel Rollins will speak with members of the Justice Department about the shipment of immigrants from Desandes to Martha’s Vineyard, though she did not yet have enough information to say whether he broke any laws, she told reporters Thursday.
Despite Wednesday’s unannounced arrivals on Martha’s Vineyard, some islanders worked quickly to provide some basic services.
“Our island jumped into action putting together 50 beds, giving everyone a good meal, providing a play area for kids, making sure people have the health care and support they need,” said Massachusetts state representative Dylan Fernandes. , a Democrat representing the island. , he tweeted. “We are a community coming together to support immigrants.”
Tens of thousands of dollars were given to help the community, Edgartown City Administrator James Haggerty told CNN on Friday.
Haggerty said overall the “outflow was huge” and reiterated that the island community responded to the call for help when migrants arrived without warning earlier this week.
“Sometimes we’re lonely and we’re not afraid out here, but we understand the journey and understand that we’re a community that ultimately wants to help people,” Haggerty said.
