Chicago residents in the community of South Shore are banding together to stop city officials from allocating public resources to the influx of migrants that have been bussed to the city over the past year.

According to the latest reports from city officials, since August 31, 2022, Chicago has received over 17,000 new migrants. Most migrants have been bussed to the area from Texas, a state that has been overwhelmed by illegal border crossings. According to the U.S. Border Patrol, there have been over 2.2 million encounters of people crossing the border in 2022.

In his plan to mitigate the migrant crisis at the southern border, Texas Governor Greg Abbott devised a plan that included offering illegal immigrants free chartered bus rides to Democratic-led cities, including Chicago. The bussing was an attempt to bring the issue of illegal immigration to Democratic leaders who have pushed back on immigration reform.

Since the busing began over a year ago, Chicago residents are now beginning to feel the strain of the influx and are standing up against city leaders who they say are only making the situation worse.

At the heart of the residents’ complaint is that the city's decision to use public buildings as migrant housing is a nuisance to the greater community. The residents of South Shore are also accusing city officials of violating zoning laws around public areas, including the former High school.

The lawsuit was first filed in May and aimed to keep the former South Shore High School from being turned into a migrant shelter facility. City officials decided to stop plans to convert the former high school into a shelter.

On September 26th, the lawsuit was refiled after the city said it would continue receiving migrants and looking at ways to use public resources to shelter those migrants. The newly filed lawsuit seeks wider relief.

To accommodate the influx of migrants, the city's mayor, Brandon Johnson, announced plans to create giant tent cities or “winterized base camps” to help contain and keep the migrants out of the impending harsh Chicago winter.

As of now, migrants are staying in temporary shelters located throughout the city. The majority of migrants have found refuge in and around Chicago police stations or inside the city’s O'Hare International Airport as they wait for a more permanent shelter. Initially, there were plans for the Amundsen Park fieldhouse to be transformed into a shelter. However, plans to build the shelter there have since been put on hold as the city explores using vacant residential buildings instead.

Chicago residents argue against the city's decisions to make plans on housing the migrants without first asking the input of residents in the area. One protester of the city’s plans, Gerald K. Harris, president of the Windy City Dolphins Youth Football League, says that the city is taking critical resources away from residents in the process.

“They want to take our resources away. That's our asset. We pay for it," Harris shared with CBS News about the city’s plans to convert Amundsen Park into what has been described as a giant tent city. "Our kids are doing some positive things. They're not in the street. They're not in gangs. They're not doing anything that's negative. They're trying to grow and be productive young Black men and women.”

A plaintiff in the lawsuit, Natasha Dunn, also expressed her frustration with the city during a press conference announcing the legal action. Dunn explains that the former high school should be reopened and not transformed into a migrant shelter. Dunn highlights the inequity of the city’s decision, arguing the city puts residents in the position "to have us foot the bill and hand over our already limited resources, public parks, and school buildings that have been unjustly closed in the first place."

In addition to creating a public nuisance, Chicago residents are arguing that the city's current method of housing migrants in and around police stations is a violation of federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration Standards.

At the local police station, hundreds of migrants are piled on the sidewalk with furniture, clothes, and other personal belongings strewn about. Along with the restroom inside the facility, the migrants are sharing a portable bathroom stationed on the outside of the building. The plaintiffs have argued this current setup is unsanitary to both the migrants and community members.

Frank Avila, an attorney representing some of the community members, shares, “They should not be in parks and floors and schools. They should be in residential housing, whether that’s hotels or hostels or apartments or houses or some kind of group living facility.” Avila adds, “It’s not sanitary, it’s not residential living, it’s not humane for the people living there.”

The lawsuit is also seeking an audit of the city's finances. "The city of Chicago has allocated or spent $100 million, first $30 million, then $51 million, and now $20 million for a security company; you should not have people sleeping in tents outside when winter is coming," shares Avila.

Residents have made it clear during the press conference that although they oppose the city's response to the influx of migrants, their complaints are not against the migrants themselves, but against city leadership.

A hearing on the case is scheduled for November 27th. Currently, South Shore is the only community that has filed a lawsuit, but Avila shares that additional legal action may be brought forward by other community members.