Demand that the DC Government Support Migrants Being Bused to DC
Since April 13th, Governor Greg Abbott has been busing asylum seekers from the Texas border to DC as part of a racist publicity stunt. Buses drop migrants off at Union Station six days a week anywhere between 6 AM in the morning and 10 PM at night. Migrants often arrive with only the clothes they’re wearing and with no way to get to friends and family or money for housing. For 12 weeks, DMV organizers and volunteers have been showing up every single day to support our new neighbors with ZERO support from the DC government. So far we have welcomed 100+ buses each carrying 30 to 60 people each, around 3,000 people in total.
Since day one, the DC government has abdicated their responsibility to support newly arrived migrants. Take 5 minutes to call, email, and tweet at DC councilmembers and demand that they take action now!
CONTACT INFORMATION
Don't know which ward you’re in? Find out here.
Remember to contact the Council Chair, the 4 At-large Councilmembers AND your Ward’s Councilmember (6 people in total). If you hear back from a councilmember please let us know, email sanctuarydmv2017@gmail.com.
Script for Phone Calls
Hi, my name is _____ and I am reaching out to you to ask you to take action to support migrants being bused to DC. [For DC residents: I have lived in DC/ Ward __ for __ years.]
For three months, Governor Abbott has been busing migrants from Texas to DC. Buses arrive 6 days a week from the early hours of the morning to late at night. For 12 weeks the DMV community has been welcoming migrants arriving on buses, with NO help from the DC government. The community has welcomed over 100 buses, carrying around three thousand people and spent over two hundred thousand dollars of grassroots raised money doing so. Organizers are physically and mentally exhausted from doing the government's job for it. People are burned out and getting sick. Without our labor, asylum seekers would be left out on the streets.
The DC government has a choice—either stand with community members and asylum seekers, or be complicit in Governor Abbott’s racist, xenophobic stunt. Will Councilmember _______ support our new neighbors by providing them with respite space, food, transport, and temporary housing upon arrival?
Sample Email
Subject: Take Action to Support Migrants Bused to DC!
Dear Councilmember ____,
My name is ____ and I am emailing you to ask you to take action to support migrants being bused to DC. [DC residents: I have lived in DC/ Ward __ for __ years and this issue is deeply important to me.]
For three months, Governor Abbott has been busing migrants from Texas to DC. Buses arrive 6 days a week from the early hours of the morning to late at night. For 12 weeks the DMV community has been welcoming migrants arriving on buses, with NO help from the DC government. The community has received over 100 buses, carrying around 3,000 people and spent over $200k of grassroots raised money doing so. This involves welcoming buses, purchasing travel tickets, arranging transportation and accompaniment to bus terminals and airports, responding to medical and other basic needs, and providing shelter for an increased flow of buses from Texas.
What the community has been doing was never supposed to be a long term solution. Organizers are physically and mentally exhausted from doing the government's job for it. People are burned out and getting sick. Without our labor, asylum seekers would be left out on the streets. It is unacceptable that the DC government has relied on volunteers and residents' labor and donations for almost three months to support folks arriving on buses.
The DMV community’s desire to support our new neighbors has been exploited by the DC government for far too long as a way to ignore a growing humanitarian crisis in this city. You claim that this is a Sanctuary city but provide no sanctuary to those who are seeking it. This lack of support for migrants echoes and is deeply intertwined with the forced displacement of and lack of support for longtime DC residents and our unhoused neighbors.
The DC government has a choice—either stand with the community members and asylum seekers, or be complicit in Governor Abbott’s racist, xenophobic stunt. Will you support our new neighbors by providing them with respite space, food, transport, and temporary housing upon arrival? It is time for the council to step up and meet our demands for the dignified treatment of migrants being bused to our city: bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands.
Sample tweets
It has been three months since Abbott started busing migrants to DC. The DMV community has welcomed folks every single day with zero help from the DC government. It is time for the @councilofdc and @mayorbowser to step up and meet our demands: bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Around 3,000 asylum seekers have been bused to DC by Gov. Abbott and the DC government has been silent. The @councilofdc and @mayorbowser have a choice — either stand by the DC community and asylum seekers, or be complicit in this racist, xenophobic stunt: bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 1
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @BrianneKNadeau @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson! bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 2
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @CMBrookePinto @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson! bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 3
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @marycheh @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson! bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 4
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @CMLewisGeorgeW4 @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 5
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @CM_McDuffie @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson! bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 6
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @charlesallen @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson! bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 7
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @VinceGrayWard7 @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson! bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands
Ward 8
.@MayorBowser & @councilofdc have ignored migrants being bused to DC for almost 3 months, so the DMV community had to do their job for them. Step up and meet our demands @trayonwhite @ChmnMendelson @RobertWhite_DC @tweetelissa @AnitaBondsDC @chenderson! bit.ly/migrantsupportdemands