Migrants rally at NYC’s City Hall, want officials to make it easier for them to work

NEW YORK – Hundreds of migrants from African countries rallied at City Hall Tuesday. 

They called for a better quality of life, saying they want to be put to work, but it has been difficult to cut through all the red tape. 

Hundreds turned out to protest the city and how they say it’s handling migrants coming from countries like Haiti, Guinea, Senegal and others. 

The rally took place on the same day the New York City Council’s committees on immigration and hospitals are holding oversight hearings. They wanted to hear about the experiences new migrants from African countries are having with the city, hoping to understand things like how the administration is addressing language access barriers, health needs, and other roadblocks that growing numbers of newcomers say they are dealing with. 

Many at the rally said two of their biggest issues are housing: How they only get temporary shelters, then kicked out and have no place to go, and also they say they’re unable to work since they don’t have work permits. They’re asking for the city to streamline the process so they can get to work. 

“Find solutions for all African community,” one person said. “They’re young guys. They’re 19 or 20 years old, so they’re ready to work. But we need to get better conditions for these guys.”

“I’m very upset about it, because I was not thinking it would be this way. lack of shelter. Lack of many things. Lack of jobs,” said another.