Several alderpeople, from across the political spectrum, asked Budget Director Annette Guzman why the mayor set aside just $150 million in his spending plan to care for the migrants, even though that is less than half of what the city will have spent to care for Chicago’s newest arrivals through the end of 2023.

Johnson concluded his time was better spent in Chicago, grappling with the crisis that has strained the city’s social safety net and exposed deep tension between Chicago’s Black and Latino communities, officials said.  

More than 3,567 migrants are living in police stations across the city and at O’Hare International Airport with another 11,043 migrants living in city shelters as of Friday, according to city data. 

Mayor Brandon Johnson this week unveiled his $16.6 billion spending plan for 2024. Meanwhile, Illinois confirmed its first measles case since 2019, and Chicago’s theater community is facing multiple challenges.

“Chicago is a place strong enough to welcome and embrace newcomers while honoring our commitments to those who are already here, especially those who have long suffered disinvestment,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said.

Filipino American History Month in October puts a spotlight on the achievements of Filipino Americans, the stories of Filipino Americans throughout history and how that history is still felt today.

The escalating migrant crisis dominated political news in Chicago this week. Meanwhile, WTTW News investigated instances of Chicago Public Schools hiring fired Chicago police officers to work as security guards. Here are five stories you may have missed.

Officials are still scouting locations for the massive tents, which could shelter, feed and care for as many as 1,000 migrants in a single location.

The move is the latest effort to deal with swelling numbers of migrants as the Biden administration comes under increasing pressure from Republicans and mayors from the president’s own party to do more to slow arrivals.

It marked the latest in a series of contentious community meetings across the city as officials work to find housing for the influx of thousands of migrants being sent from the southern border.

Without naming GOP figures like Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Pritzker blamed political leaders who “have shipped people to our state like cargo in a dehumanizing attempt to score political points.”

Ald. Pat Dowell called on Mayor Brandon Johnson to center the need of Black Chicagoans and warned that every bus that arrives “is eating away at the goodwill of the people of the city of Chicago.”

There is no evidence that any Chicago police officer had sexual contact with any of the migrants forced to sleep on the floor of the stations after arriving in Chicago from the southern border, the head of the agency charged with investigating police misconduct announced Friday.

The cost of caring for the migrants through the end of the year is now estimated to reach $345 million, according to updated financial projections shared by Cristina Pacione Zayas, the mayor’s first deputy chief of staff. Three weeks ago, those costs were pegged at $302 million, according to city data.

It is expected the final decision on DACA’s future will lie in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court – that would be the third time DACA has come before the high court since it was instituted by executive order during the Obama administration in 2012.

The various scenarios playing out across the country paint a picture of a strained immigration system making an impact far from the U.S.-Mexico border. The Biden administration late Wednesday announced measures intended to alleviate the problems.