Mayor Adams Considering Curfews for Migrant Shelters to Curb Uptick in Crime

Photo byElena KoychevaonUnsplash

The Post reports that the Adams administration is considering enforcing curfews at migrant shelters throughout the city in response to complaints from neighbors about individuals begging for food and clothing at every door, sometimes late at night.

Curfews were "something they were looking into," according to Molly Schaeffer, the mayor's head of Asylum Seeker Operations, during a Thursday meeting with local officials.

At the meeting, Queens Councilwoman Joann Ariola brought up the matter, pointing out that homeless shelters throughout the city already have curfews in place that end at 11 p.m. The councilwoman proposed that implementing similar restrictions for migrants would lessen the neighborhood panhandling problem.

“I asked questions about the possibility of a curfew at migrant shelters. I think a curfew should be set because homeless people [staying in NYC shelters] have curfews,” Ariola told The Post. "We've been seeing an uptick in crimes committed by the migrants throughout the city, and a lot of migrants go into communities begging for money at doorsteps," she said. She then added, “If it’s good enough for homeless New Yorkers it’s good enough for migrants.”

Some migrants do not want a curfew. At the Floyd Bennett Field shelter, some shelter residents who were heading to work on Friday morning were interviewed by News 12. The migrants say they work varying hours and claim a curfew would be awful for them. One man stated he frequently returns home from work after 1 a.m. and if he couldn't get in, he would have to sleep outdoors regardless of weather conditions.

Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition Murad Awawdeh is also in opposition to the curfew. He posits that the Adams administration is focusing on the wrong problem when it pushes for HERRC curfews in response to concerns about migrant begging. The group has assisted in welcoming migrants to the city since 2022.

“We should be looking into why they are not getting the help that they need at the centers, considering that the city has been saying they’ve been all along providing migrants with all the help they need,” Awawdeh said. “The knee-jerk reaction should not be more punitive measures or try to put people in a jam if they are a few minutes late. It puts more burdens on people as they’re trying to build up their lives.”