While there has been a push back against immigrants in many parts of the city, it is often a different story in Harlem.
Dozens of black immigrants have arrived in the area – and are being welcomed by some local officials.
“When people are looking, where can I go for help, especially West Africans, they will come to Harlem. They will come to a place where, when they look around, people look like them,” city councilor Yusef Salaam said at an Eid celebration in Harlem on Saturday.
Harlem has become a haven for many new arrivals looking for community and help.
On Saturday, they were welcomed with open arms at an end-of-Ramadan celebration.
“As it was during the Ramadan season and even before, that they know they are included in our fellowship, they are fed, they are welcome to eat with us, break bread with us and pray with us,” the State Senator said. Cordell Cleare said.
Cleare is part of a network of officials, nonprofits and mosques that have rallied around black immigrants.
He said they have stepped in where City Hall has left gaps in services related to housing, food and legal aid.
“We’ve been involved with a lot of community partners in giving them coats, appropriate clothing, things to wear outside because a lot of them do delivery work,” Cleare said. “We try to help as much as we can with resources related to immigration law and related to services that may be available to them.”
As of late March, the top African countries of origin for migrants in the city’s care are Guinea, Senegal and Mauritania.
One organization in Harlem that helps with the influx of immigrants is African Communities Together.
“When people come to us, they often tell us they’ve tried other places that don’t speak their language or don’t understand how to get help,” said Amaha Kassa, executive director of the Harlem-based organization. .
Casa said a major challenge for the organization is finding long-term housing.
Many African immigrants are single adults. However, the city has set limits on their stay at 30 or 60 days.
“We’ve been able to connect people with limited short-term stays, but that’s gone quickly,” Casa said. “Really, nothing we or other nonprofits are going to make up for what the city can do in terms of housing tens of thousands of people.”
The agency also helps immigrants access health care and municipal identification cards known as IDNYC, which can help them open a bank account.
City officials acknowledged Tuesday that they have been slow to find translators for some of the native languages spoken by black immigrants.
Critics of the city’s response to the immigration crisis have raised concerns about discrimination.
“In America, we’ve always experienced what they call the tinge of rejection. If you look like this. But, if you look like that, then it is the complexion for acceptance,” said Salaam.
More than 189,000 immigrants have come to the city, with more than 64,000 currently in the city’s care.