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Migrants in Denver issue list of 13 demands that must be met before they'll leave street encampment for shelter, including better food and work permits
Migrants in Denver have issued a list of 13 demands that they said must be met in order for them to leave the street encampment and go to a shelter.
On Wednesday, the group said that if their lengthy list of demands, which included better food options and work permits, is met, they will voluntarily leave their tents and go to city-funded shelters.
Denver Human Services has tried to persuade the migrants to get off the streets, and according to city officials, even with the demands, that offer still remains for those who leave.
V Reeves, a migrant advocate, told KDVR, 'The camp as a collective came up with a list of demands.'
V Reeves, a migrant advocate, said that the Denver migrant community will only go to city-run shelters if their 13 demands are met
The list asked for better food options and work permits for migrants, among other orders. (pictured: the title of the list)
The list, which has circulated on social media, was created after the city started to move migrants from encampments under train tracks and into shelters early Wednesday.
'This morning, they sent buses to take people over without presenting that document and without having any kind of signature for accountability,' Reeves said.
Read the list below:
Migrant demands to accept DCC shelter
1. Migrants will cook their own food with fresh, culturally appropriate ingredients provided by the City instead of premade meals- rice, chicken, flour, oil, butter, tomatoes, onions, etc... Also people will not be punished for bringing in and eating outside food.
2. Shower access will be available without time limits and can be accessed whenever- we are not in the military, we're civilians.
3. Medical professional visits will happen regularly and referrals/connections for specialty care will be made as needed.
4. All will receive that same housing support that has been offered to others. They cannot kick people out in 30 days without something stable established.
5. There needs to be a clear, just process before exiting someone for any reason- including verbal, written and final warnings.
6. All shelter residents will receive connection to employment support, including work permit applications for those who qualify.
7. Consultations for each person/family with a free immigration lawyer must be arranged to discuss/progress their cases, and then the City will provide on-going legal support in the form of immigration document clinics, and including transportation to relevant court dates.
The list has since circulated on social media and was created after the city started to move migrants from encampments under train tracks and into shelters early Wednesday
'We've been offering timing shelter, basically just trying to get families to leave the camp and come inside,' Jon Ewing with Denver Human Services said
8. The City will provide privacy for families/ individuals within the shelter.
9. No more verbal or physical or mental abuse will be permitted from the staff, including no sheriff sleeping inside & monitoring 24/7- we are not criminals and won't be treated as such.
10. Transportation for all children to and from their schools will be provided until they finish in 3 weeks.
11. No separating families, regardless of if family members have children or not. The camp will stay together.
12. The City must schedule a meeting with the Mayor & those directly involved in running the Newcomer program ASAP to discuss further improvements & ways to support migrants.
13. The City must provide all residents with a document signed by a City official in English & Spanish with all of these demands that included a number to call to report mistreatment.
Reeves believes that instead of meeting their demands, the city chose to take matters into their own hands.
In response to the migrants' new demands, the city said that they have been trying to work with them.
'We've been offering timing shelter, basically just trying to get families to leave the camp and come inside,' Jon Ewing with Denver Human Services said.
Ewing explained that the shelters will come with better conditions than what the migrants are dealing with currently.
He said that the shelters will offer 'three square meals a day' and that people can even cook for themselves should they wish.
'There have been so many complaints about the food being spoiled or not being enough and malnutrition amongst children,' Ewing said.
Ewing said that the city's offer comes with benefits including helping migrants understand what they qualify and don't qualify for.
He said: 'What might be something that is a feasible path for you to success that is not staying on the streets of Denver?'
Ewing added that the city has tried to find a 'compromise' with migrants and that the hope is to not have 'families on the streets of Denver.'
Denver Human Services has tried to persuade the migrants to get off the streets and into shelters, and according to city officials, even with the demands, that offer still remains
On Wednesday morning, city officials brought buses to the encampment to shuttle migrants to shelters that wanted to leave
In April, Denver Communications Liaison, Andres Carrera, warned that Colorado did not have the proper resources to take care of the influx of migrants
It is unclear if the city will meet the migrant's demands and what will happen next.
For now, the city has decided to keep shuttling buses to the encampment for migrants that want to leave the streets and go to an indoor city-run shelter or hotel.
In April, Denver Communications Liaison Andres Carrera begged migrant families to move on to other sanctuary cities like New York or Chicago.
Carrera warned them that Colorado did not have the proper resources to take care of them and that they would 'suffer.'
'The opportunities are over,' Carrera said in Spanish. 'New York gives you more. Chicago gives you more. So I suggest you go there where there is longer-term shelter. There are also more job opportunities there.'
The overburdened city has allocated more than $100 million to provide housing, medical care and education for asylum seekers, according to Mayor Mike Johnston.
But amid the ongoing migrant crisis, that number could reach $180 million - 15 percent of Denver's annual budget.
Other sanctuary cities have begun to do the same as Chicago previously emptied its state-run shelters at Rogers Park's Leona Beach and Little Village's Pietrowski Park.
The crisis has also reached a fever pitch in New York City, which has seen roughly 180,000 migrants enter since 2022. Under its 'Right to Shelter' law, the city must provide food and housing.
Mayor Eric Adams beseeched the state to provide more funding during a joint legislative budget hearing last month.
'New Yorkers are already carrying most of the asylum seekers. It is wrong to ask them to do more. It has put the city in a precarious situation,' he said at the time.