Elon Musk issued an ominous warning after New York City students were forced into remote learning Wednesday as their school was used to house migrants Tuesday night.
“This is what happens when you run out of hotel rooms. Soon, cities will run out of schools to vacate. Then they will come for your homes,” Musk wrote on X Tuesday.
Musk responded to a video shared by the LibsofTikTok account showing migrants being dropped off from a yellow school bus to James Madison High School in Brooklyn.
“School is closed tomorrow because illegals will be sleeping in the school’s gym. This is disgraceful! NYC is prioritizing illegals over Americans,” LibsofTikTok wrote.
NYC HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS FORCED INTO REMOTE LEARNING AS 2,000 MIGRANTS SHELTERED IN SCHOOL INSTEAD
Musk doubled down, writing, “They’ve run out of hotel rooms, are kicking kids out of school for illegal housing and now they want your homes too.”
That was in response to LibsofTiktok sharing a screenshot of an Aug. 9, 2023, article by Boston 25 News with the headline, “Governor Healey asks residents to house migrant families amid growing shelter crisis.” In Massachusetts, Gov. Maura Healey, who declared a state of emergency over the crisis, had asked residents to consider sponsoring migrant families by hosting them in their homes as the state’s shelter system reached capacity, according to the outlet.
In a press release, New York City Council Minority Whip Inna Vernikov said earlier Tuesday that due to the incoming storm, “around 2,000 migrants from Floyd Bennett field will be transported to James Madison High School this evening and will be occupying its gymnasiums and auditorium overnight.”
“Our public schools are meant to be places of learning and growth for our children, and were never intended to be shelters or facilities for emergency housing,” Vernikov wrote. “There are approximately 4,000 students who attend Madison High School. Their parents are rightfully concerned. Our constituents who live in the vicinity are concerned for their safety and wellbeing. This will agitate local residents, disrupt the entire school environment, and place a tremendous burden on families, students, school administrators and staff.”
Vernikov demanded a “full stop” to using public schools as migrant shelters, saying the situation at Floyd Bennett Field was “both unacceptable and was entirely foreseeable” due to the site’s vulnerability to inclement weather.
“Madison is a scan school where students get scanned upon entrance, but the migrants got to bypass that as per the NYPD. A lot of law enforcement and other agency resources have been poured into this situation tonight. Also, these children are being moved from place to place and will be forced to wake up at 4:30am to leave the school to go elsewhere,” Vernikov wrote on X, sharing video of migrants, including children entering the high school Tuesday evening. “Unacceptable situation for all!”
FOX Business reached out to the offices of NYC Mayor Eric Adams and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul for comment, but neither immediately responded.
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Though the migrants were reportedly moved back out again by sunrise, the high school notified parents that the building would be closed and remote learning would be available for all students Wednesday, “to ensure a smooth transition for families temporarily sheltering overnight in the building.”
New York State Assemblyman Mike Reilly, who serves the south shore of Staten Island, was at the Brooklyn high school on Wednesday where parents also rallied in protest. Several parents who spoke to Fox News on camera outside James Madison High School described how some teachers did not show up on the provided links for remote learning on Wednesday, while others opened the Zoom by giving students an assignment and then promptly logging off. The mothers stressed this interruption in learning comes as their students are preparing for state regents exams and others that will impact their college applications – and after COVID lockdowns impacted their children’s educations.
“We knew this was going to happen. Today it’s James Madison. Where’s tomorrow? Or the next day? These storms are coming. It’s the winter time.,” Reilly said, stressing that he introduced a bipartisan bill months ago to prevent schools and day cares from being used as migrant shelters. “Floyd Bennett Field, really? Like you weren’t warned? Mr. Mayor, you knew this was going to happen. Everyone knew this was going to happen.”
Reilly stressed that in the past, school officials hesitated to close schools in snowstorms or inclement weather, citing that Title 1 low-income students still needed to eat school meals.
“What about the Title 1 students here, threw them out in the cold. It’s about time we wake up,” Reilly said.