For the past year, migrants from the United States–Mexico border have been loaded onto buses by republican governors of the border states and shipped off to cities with democratic leaders. This act of carelessly playing with lives needs to stop. 

The migrants that are sent to Chicago, New York and Washington D.C. are sleeping in police stations, shelters and airports, but they are running out of space, according to the Associated Press. 

Earlier this month, New York City began asking for help with the influx of migrants from the southern border, reported ABC News. Many of those seeking asylum are sleeping on sidewalks outside popular hotels, as space runs out. 

In April, former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot wrote a letter to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and urged him to stop sending buses full of migrants to Chicago because they are running out of resources. 

“I am, yet again, appealing to your better nature and asking that you stop this inhumane and dangerous action,” Lightfoot wrote in her letter. 

Since Aug. 2022, Chicago has cared for over 8,000 migrants, and the number is still growing, while resources are decreasing. States like Texas are shipping people off with little to no regard for their needs. 

“Nearly all the migrants have been in dire need of food, water and clothing and many needed extensive medical care. Some of the individuals you placed on the buses were women in active labor and some were victims of sexual assault,” Lightfoot wrote. “None of these urgent needs were addressed in Texas. Instead, these individuals and families were packed onto buses and shipped across the country like freight without regard to their personal circumstances.” 

Learning about how these people are being treated should send up a major red flag as to the kind of leadership these southern states have. It is heartbreaking that they could willingly treat people so poorly. 

Additionally, the state of Texas alone has spent over $12 million busing migrants to Washington D.C. and New York, according to CNN. 

Instead of spending millions on shipping humans like cattle, why not put that money toward investing in resources for migrants and providing medical attention to those who need it? Perhaps it’s their arrogance, prejudices or selfish character that is preventing them from simply treating others with kindness and respect. 

The issue of immigration in the U.S. is one of undeniable controversy, but it is not going to be solved by shipping the issue off to another state or city, the immigration problem runs much deeper than that. 

Immigration itself is not the problem, the problem is the system. Everyone agrees the system is broken, but no one can agree on how to fix it. If we all have a common goal, why are we so pinned against each other? It doesn’t make sense. 

Immigrants, no matter where they come from, are still people and deserve to be treated as such. They should not be treated like livestock being packed onto a bus and shipped off for someone else to deal with. 

Immigration is not a situation that one state must bear alone, it is the United States of America for a reason. The states hold the responsibility of helping each other out when resources are limited.