Last Wednesday, WBEZ (91.5 FM) reported that a civic leader of St. Louis visited the Chicago Mayor’s Office to discuss a program whereby migrants from Venezuela could be brought to the Gateway to the West in order to ease the migrant crisis gripping the Windy City just as winter temperatures arrive.
It’s estimated that 20,000 migrants, mostly Venezuelans, have arrived in Chicago this year, and finding them places to stay has been challenging.
The WBEZ report details that St. Louis is currently in a decline of population and employees, and some in the city believe the migrants and the city would be better off long-term if they moved there.
The International Institute of St. Louis announced the new Latino Outreach Program last month with the aim of both attracting and accommodating migrants arriving from Latin America.
Karlos Ramirez, vice president of Latino Outreach for the International Institute, told WBEZ the as-yet unconfirmed agreement “could be the potential for a great relationship between both cities,” adding that “if the [migrants] are going to be in a better place, St. Louis is going to be in a better place, and Chicago is going to be in a better place, I think everybody wins.”
Ramirez says that any next step would have to include sharing details and practices between Latino Outreach and its partners with their counterparts in Chicago.
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Fox News 2 reached out to the St. Louis Mayor’s Office for comment, and the representative shared a statement released previously in response to the WBEZ report.
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“While the City has not had direct conversations on welcoming more migrants from Chicago, the City of St. Louis has had a longstanding cooperative relationship with the International Institute to welcome immigrants and refugees to the St. Louis area.”
Other migrant welcome programs in the city, such as the Arch Grants program, saw great success in Afghans fleeing the country in August of 2021, and the International Institute modeled its efforts for Latino Outreach on this success.
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