New York City opens tent complex for bused immigrants

The temporary shelter opened Wednesday on Randall’s Island between Manhattan and Queens. It serves as a waystation specifically for single adult men, many of them from Venezuela. Immigrants have been arriving on buses chartered from Texas several times per week, and they need a place to stay while the city determines their next steps. Homeless shelters in New York City are full with about 63,000 people—23 percent more than the middle of this summer— and a disproportionate number of them are single men. Migrant families with children are being housed in a hotel.

What are the tents like? The large, white plastic tents are heated. In addition to sleeping areas, they have recreational rooms with televisions and spaces to meet with case workers. Similar types of tents have been used as temporary shelters at the southern U.S. border.

Dig deeper: Read Addie Offerein’s report in Compassion about a parole program aiming to stem the tide of illegal immigration.