Migrants confused after being released into San Diego
SAN DIEGO, Calif. (CNN, KYMA/KECY) - In California, hundreds of asylum seekers appear confused and lost after being released on to San Diego streets.
They had been housed in detention centers before being processed and given court dates.
On Friday, more crowds of migrants are being released onto San Diego County streets. Transit stations are being filled with asylum seekers from around the world. Some squeezing everything they have into a carry-on bag.
The migrants here have been dropped off at a trolley station as part of what's known as a street release. Many were confused. In fact, one group asked me if they could have someone call them a cab and get them to the airport. They've come all the way from China.
What lies ahead
Muscab Bashir is from Somalia and had this to say about his journey to the United States, "I'm feeling safe. I'm feeling happy because I come to the land of opportunity where I can change my life."
He said he was in detention for seven days after crossing into the U.S. from Mexico. His light puffer jacket and scarf no match for the extreme cold he will likely feel in just a few months.
"I want to go to Minnesota," Bashir spoke.
Bashir and many others here seem ill prepared for what lies ahead.
Trying to help
When asked if they fear for their lives, one man from Colombia said, "Yes."
Lindsay Toczylowski, Executive Director at Immigration Defenders Law Center, is trying to help.
"So everybody who crosses the border and is here being released by Customs and Border Protection, they're actually in deportation proceedings," Toczylowski shared.
The immigration attorney is trying to connect as many migrants as she can with other lawyers. With migrant shelters in the county now at capacity, volunteers are trying to fill in the gaps.
"We got some sandwiches, some soups, water, because they're going to be very hungry," said Robert Vivar, San Diego Immigration Rights Consortium Board Member.
On Friday, local leaders called on the White House to provide more resources to address the influx.
