Politics & Government
35 Refugee Families Arrive In Skokie, About 40 Kids To Enter Schools
Village staff said the asylum seekers, mostly from Venezuela, arrived last month as part of a program with state and Cook County officials.
SKOKIE, IL — About 35 families seeking asylum who arrived in Skokie last month are temporarily staying at a location in the village, staff announced.
Village staff said the families are mostly from Venezuela. Since 2015, nearly 7 million people — nearly one out of every four residents — have fled the South American nation amid economic collapse, political repression and humanitarian emergencies.
Worldwide, there are nearly 1 million asylum-seekers from Venezuela worldwide, according the Interagency Coordination Platform for Refugees and Migrants.
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Plus, the United States does not recognize the Venezuelan government of Nicholas Maduro, which limits the ability of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to return migrants to their home country.
Since Labor Day weekend, more than 1,900 migrants have been bused to Illinois from Texas as part of an initiative by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. That includes 79 people who arrived by bus in Des Plaines on Saturday. Busses have also arrived in Chicago, Naperville and Elk Grove Village.
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Abbott's two-year Operation Lone Star border security mission has cost more than $4 billion so far, the Dallas Morning News reported. State officials told the paper last month there are more than 5,000 Texas National Guard troops stationed along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The asylum-seekers currently staying in Skokie arrived as part of a "cooperative program with the State of Illinois, Cook County, Illinois State Board of Education and other partners," according to village staff.
No village resources have been requested, staff said, but village officials have been in contact with agencies coordinating resettlement and humanitarian services for the families.
During the resettlement process, about 40 children will be attending Skokie schools across all grade levels, according to village staff.
Staff said local public school districts are working with village representatives, the Niles Township English Language Learners Parent Center and the Regional Office of Education to meet the children's needs.
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