How the U.S. Government Contributed to the NY Migrant Crisis

New York City (NYC) is experiencing a humanitarian emergency characterized by the

arrival of thousands of migrants, many from Venezuela, seeking shelter, food, and other

essential resources.

Photo by Nout Gons: https://www.pexels.com/photo/city-street-photo-378570/

While many have independently taken the long journey to seek safety, others have been deliberately sent to the city by politicians like Texas Governor Greg Abbot, who essentially used people and their struggles as pawns to send a political message to the White House, advocating for a stronger stance towards border security by the federal government. In the course of the past year, NYC has become overwhelmed by the number of migrants needing support and has reached past the point of capacity.

As a result, the city shelter system, which is obligated to provide housing for anyone in need, has resorted to transforming hotels and office spaces into living accommodations, and has had to assemble tents for anyone else in need (Newman, 2023). The ongoing humanitarian crisis presents a severe risk to thousands of migrants by increasing their vulnerability and places the city of New York in a dangerous situation that will leave more harmed than helped.

FATIH AKTAS/ANADOLU AGENCY VIA GETTY IMAGES

While it is important to understand the gravity of this crisis and its potential consequences for everyone involved, it is equally crucial to discuss the historical context that led to this situation. Specifically, it is essential to understand the U.S.’s role in causing this problem, as it reveals how the American involvement in destabilizing foreign regions can lead to devastating humanitarian crises. Venezuela serves as a prime example of the detriments of U.S involvement overseas. Since 2014, millions of Venezuelans have fled their country in part because of the country’s extreme poverty and lack of necessary resources, human rights violations on behalf of the government, and political turmoil. Some of Venezuela’s economic fallout has been at the hand of the U.S. government which has been imposing sanctions on the country for nearly two decades in response to human rights abuses, political corruption, and authoritarianism on behalf of President Nicolás Maduro.

While under the guise of protecting human rights, economic sanctions were expanded under the Trump Administration in an effort to place the government of Juan Guaidó in power (Weisbrot and Sachs, 2023). These sanctions have had a drastic impact on Venezuela’s economic well-being and its citizens. They have led to an increase in poverty, worsened living conditions, and disrupted access to medical supplies and food sources. They have also contributed to a public health crisis, with citizens lacking access to sanitary items, clean water, and, at times, medical care due to an electricity crisis that has caused power failures in hospitals (Weisbrot and Sachs, 2023). It is important to note that this is not an

exhaustive list of all consequences associated with U.S. sanctions in Venezuela. To better

grasp the gravity of American involvement, I recommend reading Mark Weisbrot and Jeffrey

Sachs’ paper cited below and other related literature. Nevertheless, for all of the reasons listed above (and many more), Venezuelans have been forced to leave their homes in search of a safer and more prosperous life in the U.S — hence how they made their way to New York.

Naturally, the migrant crisis in NYC has become a big political debate, with Conservative

Republicans arguing against Liberal Democrats; more lenient stance on border security, often blaming their policies for the current situation in cities like New York. Particularly concerning Venezuelan migrants, this blame-shifting by Republicans is worth nothing, especially when taking into account the role that the Trump Administration played in exacerbating Venezuela’s economic turmoil and this subsequent migrant crisis. The response to this situation, especially by Republicans, seems to ignore the role that both parties have played in causing this crisis and how past and present actions by the American government can have devastating ripple effects that cross borders.

All that said, the purpose of this blog post is to incite deeper engagement in current event topics and to encourage a broader perspective when considering one’s position or assumptions about a certain situation. The situation in New York isn’t a simple story about

people fleeing economic hardship in their country. It is a complex narrative involving people

being forced to leave their home countries in response to turmoil, partly caused by international actors like the U.S., who have intervened to pursue their own interests.

References

Newman, Andy (2023) “Migrants Sleep on the Sidewalk, the Face of a Failing Shelter System”, NY Times, accessed at

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/01/nyregion/nyc-migrants-

homelessness.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-ny-migrants&variant=show&region=MAIN_CONTENT_1&block=storyline_top_links_recirc

Weisbrot, Mark and Jeffrey Sachs (2019) Economic Sanctions as Collective Punishment: The

Case of Venezuela, Center for Economic and Policy Research (Washington DC: CEPR).