As NBC News reported earlier, Republicans are "invoking" (i.e., pouncing) on the death of a 22-year-old nursing student at the hands of an illegal immigrant to push for "hard-line immigration policies" — hard-line immigration policies like not letting criminals into the country in the first place, and at the very least, deporting them after they've committed another crime besides crossing the border.
Governors like Ron DeSantis and Greg Abbott got the great idea of sending busloads of these "asylum seekers" to sanctuary cities, which began to buckle under the weight of just a couple thousand illegal immigrants. It was enough for New York City Mayor Eric Adams to call on the Biden administration to get control of the border before the city as we knew it was "destroyed."
To those in Washington, D.C., it seemed to make perfect sense for the border states to absorb millions of "new Americans." Once those buses hit New York and Chicago and Denver, though, they rethought the idea of inviting illegals to come and live there.
Joseph Simonson has a great piece in the Washington Free Beacon Tuesday about how the illegal immigrant crisis has affected Whitewater, Wisconsin, a town of about 15,000 American citizens.
What does the migrant crisis look like in practice? The population of a small midwestern town jumping by 10 percent in just two years. Police overwhelmed by domestic violence calls. Dead babies stuffed into cardboard boxes. An uptick in STDs in public schools. And of course: a…
— Aaron Sibarium (@aaronsibarium) February 27, 2024
What does the migrant crisis look like in practice? The population of a small midwestern town jumping by 10 percent in just two years. Police overwhelmed by domestic violence calls. Dead babies stuffed into cardboard boxes. An uptick in STDs in public schools. And of course: a crushing budget hole. @SaysSimonson profiles Whitewater, Wis., a progressive city mugged by the realities of illegal immigration.
Simonson reports:
Prior to their arrival, local news and political debates generally revolved around school fundraisers or the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater's D3 athletics. Today, residents are focused on their 1,000 new neighbors, who mostly hail from Nicaragua and Venezuela and largely keep to the shadows because they lack official identification. Locals say the real number of migrants in the town could easily be double the number reflected in the police department's official statistics.
…
Once the migrants arrive, it is on the town to adapt. The hiring of new ESL teachers for Whitewater Public Schools has cost hundreds of thousands of dollars alone, one city official told the Free Beacon. Some students, the official said, have enrolled in Whitewater schools without knowing more than a few English words and phrases.
An official familiar with the issue says that at least 300 English ESL students are now enrolled in Whitewater Public Schools. That official also expressed concern about internal school reports of migrant students suffering from sexual abuse at home, as some live with distant relatives.
"You're setting up a disastrous situation," the individual said. "There's been an uptick in STDs and other sexual health issues."
But no other issue is as contentious as the town's growth in police responses. Two internal Whitewater Police Department slide shows obtained by the Free Beacon describe considerable strain on local law enforcement, with officers responding to calls that sound like something out of a police procedural.
In March, one slide states, law enforcement responded to a "deceased infant … located in a cardboard box." Another individual familiar with the immigration situation described finding a woman living in a shed with her infant during the Wisconsin winter.
"None of the information in this presentation is intended to vilify any group of individuals; it is solely meant to communicate factual information about trends we are seeing in the City of Whitewater," a slide reads.
Residents want to make it clear that they have no problem with immigrants — it's just a matter of resources.
In case you think the flood of illegals is only affecting big cities … https://t.co/7xjBgSJgz5
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 27, 2024
I’m in the suburbs 30 minutes outside the city, I’m starting to see what I can only assume are illegal aliens harassing local businesses and security guards showing up for the first time ever.
— Penny2x (@imPenny2x) February 27, 2024
This will become exponentially bad
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 27, 2024
It's getting so bad, President Joe Biden is going to visit the border for the second time in his life.
In before “no one is illegal.”
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) February 27, 2024
Illegal immigration affects everyone.
— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) February 27, 2024
Even one illegal can make a change that the entire United States feels.
Even one lost American life to one illegal immigrant is unacceptable and reason enough to shut down the entire border.
We need these stories told across the country. Too few reporters are willing to do the work and those that do get stifled by their editors and bosses.
— Simon VanDyk (@VandykSimon) February 27, 2024
I have family there and it’s definitely been a strain. Especially on law enforcement.
— Renee🤷♀️💅🏻 (@eeners) February 27, 2024
They're "asylum seekers" but say they came here for the economic opportunity. How many jobs are there in Whitewater? Picking vegetables that would otherwise rot on the vine, right?
Progressive city. Enough said.
— H.R. Fernández🇺🇸🇵🇷✈🖤💙 (@MondoCafrondo) February 27, 2024
A bus load was just emptied in a tiny town in Iowa at 3 AM. We are definitely not a sanctuary state/city. The police and community are trying to find out who brought them.
— Erica~*Justice Seeker*~🐭 (@EricawithaC13) February 27, 2024
You cannot give amnesty to people from 3rd world countries without naturalization process.
— Spence ☕️ (@tspencer322) February 27, 2024
The process of becoming a citizen is a psychological, educational, and cultural reform.
What is happening is illegal and very dangerous.
Send all to Delaware
— Chansoo Byeon (@ByeonChansoo) February 27, 2024
Joe Biden has turned every state into a border state.
— Rep. Tom Tiffany (@RepTiffany) February 27, 2024
Migrants in Albertville, AL went from nearly zero in 1990 to over 25% of the population by 2010. Local schools are over half Hispanic immigrants now.https://t.co/lA27k6oXCd
— Daniel Taylor (@danieltaylornow) February 27, 2024
I know someone in law enforcement there and he says there’s definitely an increase in crime and drugs. It was a small college town surrounded by farms.
— Renee🤷♀️💅🏻 (@eeners) February 27, 2024
"Once the migrants arrive, it is on the town to adapt. "
— Benjamin (@MarleyAnalytics) February 27, 2024
🤔
Here in Iowa it’s ridiculous. Life has changed drastically in my city and in our public schools.
— Beaky (@Loumelibeek) February 27, 2024
I used to live in Whitewater, WI, but left in '95. I simply cannot picture that small town, but add 10k when college was in session, being this way. I am having trouble processing this.
— mothmoo (@MothMoo) February 27, 2024
10% is too high for assimilation.
— NotURVoodooDoll (@NotURVoodooDoll) February 27, 2024
They will always be a separate subculture.
Hospitals will be overwhelmed and some will close down. Public schools will be overcrowded and student teacher ratios will exceed state laws in elementary schools, but they’ll get “waivers”. There will be nothing you can do about it as a parent outside of pulling your kid out.
— Elisabeth Thompson (@LisaTho26849367) February 27, 2024
No sympathy. A “progressive city” can deal with the karma they earned themselves.
— Don Mason (@donmason00) February 27, 2024
Who knew a huge influx of illegals would put a strain on resources? Hospitals, school districts, police departments … none of them were prepared for something of this scale.
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