Mutay is one of the 400 people from
the DRC in Angola
who are seeking asylum and have been
welcomed with open arms in
Portland, Maine.
I raised my hand and said, "bring
them on." We are happy to take
on new families because we need
them.
In June, hundreds of African
migrants arrived in Portland from
the U.S.-Mexico border.
They spent months, sometimes years,
travelling thousands of miles across
the Atlantic and through South and
Central America.
Once in the U.S.
they too were held in detention
centers like the ones we've seen
in Texas.
Nearly 750,000 migrants
have been apprehended at the
southern border in 2019
alone.
Most are from South and Central
America, but a small,
increasing number of them are
African.
They too claim they're fleeing from
danger in their home countries.
After being held in detention and
released, they were offered a bus
ticket.
They asked for a one way ticket to
Maine.
This is another face of asylum.
What is it about Portland that
is so attractive for
these asylum seekers to want to come
here over other places?
I mean you would think for people
who are arriving to the U.S.-Mexico
border, to end up in
Maine—
It's miracle, yeah.
It's pretty far.
When they came across the border and
then were released, they
said they wanted to go someplace
that was welcoming and a number of
them heard that Portland was such a
place. We are a state that
needs young families.
Everybody says it.
We want young families, young
workers to come here.
Maine has an aging population
and an economy that desperately
needs workers.
Portland is appealing because of its
African community.
While the city of 67,000 is
80% white, there
is a sizable number of African-born
citizens.
They hear that people from their own
community and their own culture are
already there.
And that means that they can
acclimate and find stability.
Everybody has stepped up and said,
you know, we are
a welcoming city.
We want you.
When we met Mutay, his wife, and two
daughters in July, they were among
the hundreds staying in the Portland
Expo Center.
When the city saw a surge of new
arrivals, they turned its sports
complex into a makeshift shelter.
Mutay and his family fled ongoing
violence in the Democratic Republic
of Congo.
Why did you choose Portland?
What's your American dream?
And he's already begun.
Volunteers across the city have been
teaching asylum seekers English.
The number you call for an
emergency?
911.
Write it down.
Laura deDoes and her son drop
off donations at Maine Baby.
Ladies, I'm gonna put stuff directly
on the shelves, but I just want to
know where you want underwear.
Right here? Where hundreds of goods
have been pouring in for families to
shop for necessities for free.
They're our present neighbors,
they're our future friends, business
partners, co-workers,
employers, employees.
They have so much to offer us.
They want to be a member of society.
They want to work here.
They want to be Americans.
And there's Hope House, a
residential housing program that's
exclusively for asylum seekers.
Portland's residents have also
responded financially, contributing
to some $900,000
in donations for asylum seekers.
And Maine's governor Janet Mills
took it one step further,
expanding the state's general
assistance program to help the new
families get by until they can start
working.
Every step towards asylum
eligibility and at the same
time not dropping the ball on
them and not letting more children
go hungry without shelter
and clothing.
But behind this outpouring of
support, there's fear and
uncertainty.
While Portland has an open arms
approach, the Trump administration
has vowed to target asylum seekers
through stricter immigration
enforcement.
They say we have open arms.
They're always saying they have open
arms. Let's see if they have open
arms. The system is full.
Can't take you anymore.
The asylum program,
is a scam.
Some of the roughest people you've
ever seen.
People that looked like they should
be fighting for the UFC.
Even threatening to deport those
already in the country legally.
And this month the Supreme Court
upheld a trump policy that denies
asylum applications to anyone
passing through another country
without applying for asylum there
first.
People have the right to seek
asylum. That's a right guaranteed
under U.S. law and it's guaranteed
under international law,
and people who are facing
persecution in their home countries
need to know that we're gonna be
here fighting to defend that right.
That right to seek safety and
asylum.
So what kind of jeopardy does that
put asylum seekers
in Portland in?
It's really terrorizing for people
who are here fleeing
persecution.
They have to live in fear.
They've actually had trouble
sleeping, worrying that ICE will
come and knock on the door and
deport them.
The messages from the administration
now are contributing to people's
trauma.
I am never gonna allow
people to stand up in this city and
say send them back.
We've made that clear.
Our police department is clear.
We're not gonna be out harassing
folks. We want folks to live here
happily and that's what we've been
doing.
Is there a limit to the hospitality?
Our schools have capacity.
Our economy has capacity.
You talk to employers.
Go talk to anybody and ask them how
hard it is to find workers.
You walk around this room and talk
to people, they all want to work.
And it's going to cost money,
there's no doubt about it.
But our budget will be fine and
the investment that we're making
today, the return on the dollar down
the road.
It's, it's immeasurable.
Mutay remains hopeful that the
U.S. will be as welcoming as Maine
has been this summer, and that he
made the right decision to risk
his life in hope of a better
one.
Being here in Portland now, is
there anything that you are
afraid of?