New Yorkers remain overwhelmingly in favor of immigration to the United States despite the state's burgeoning crisis to house and resettle newcomers arriving from the southern border.
New polling from the upstate Siena College Research Institute found that the majority of New York residents want the federal government to make it easier for newcomers to obtain documents to work and want to see immigrants housed on federal property rather than in privately owned hotels and city shelters.
DESANTIS POINTS TO RENEWED TERRORISM THREAT ON SOUTHERN BORDER ON 9/11 ANNIVERSARY
“There’s no doubt, the vast majority of New Yorkers recognize that our country was built by immigrants from virtually every nation around the globe and assimilating immigrants has made America great,” said Don Levy, SCRI’s director, in a statement issued with the polling on Tuesday.
More than 75% of respondents said most immigrants want only to build a better life and that the country was built by people around the world, according to the Sept. 5-8 telephone and online survey by Siena College.
Seventy-two percent said immigrants bring vitality to America, and 60% believed businesses need immigrants to be successful. Slightly more people disagreed with the statement that immigrants take in more resources than they return in economic activity — 48% to 42%.
“Despite nearly a third saying that America no longer needs new immigrants, well over half and a majority of both Democrats and Republicans said that businesses need new immigrants in order to be successful," Levy said.
However, 43% of the poll's respondents identified as Democrats — more than double the 21% who said they were Republicans. The remaining 36% were undecided or independent-affiliated. The higher numbers of Democrats polled were meant to mirror the percentage of New Yorkers who lean to the left politically than to the right.
In addition to to the overall positive views on immigration, 56% of New Yorkers said federally owned land and buildings should be used as temporary shelters for the current immigration surge, as opposed to 36% who opposed it.
At present, New York City has accommodated more than 100,000 immigrants who traveled to the city from the southern border after crossing illegally from Mexico and being released into the interior of the U.S. to face court proceedings years down the road.
The city houses immigrants at more than 190 shelters, including hotels and tent facilities at parks.
Fifty-nine percent of respondents said it should be easier for immigrants to obtain federal documents that allow them to legally work anywhere in the country. These documents cannot be obtained until six months after an immigrant makes a request for asylum, leaving many jobless and unable to secure housing without proof of work.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Three in five people wanted to see Congress move on comprehensive immigration reform that provides illegal immigrants with a way to become U.S. citizens, compared to 28% who opposed it.
The survey was conducted among 414 New York adults by landline and cellphones, as well as 386 responses online. The poll had a 3.8 percentage point margin of error.