"Stand with Philly's Haitian Community" rally aims to provide support for Haitian migrants

A rally in Philadelphia on Sunday brought local community leaders and elected officials together to gather support for Haitian's seeking asylum in America amid a surge of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. 

"They look exactly like my brothers and sisters, it tugs at my heart," Alain Joinville, a first-generation Haitian-American said. "The early images that came from the border of people with while was really just hurt. It really hurt me."

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Joinville is part of a team that organized the "Stand With Philly’s Haitian Community" rally in Northeast Philadelphia with a goal of boosting support for the more than 100 Haitian migrants already in the city, according to leaders. 

"We are here to support them with elected officials, other Haitian community members, help them get funding, housing, legal services," Joinville said. 

"Some of the housing is temporary, might be a little overcrowded at the moment, so they need different types of housing and we understand that probably more are going to come so we need more housing to support them."

Images of the surge in Haitian migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border prompted Philadelphia officials to join a growing national call against the Biden Administration’s immigration policies that began under President Trump which have resulted in more than 4,000 Haitians being deported. 

Community leaders and elected officials came together in Northeast Philadelphia on Sunday to rally support for Haitian migrants.

A mixture of politicians and community leaders at the rally on Sunday vowed to make Philadelphia live up to its mantra of ‘Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection.’

"We are committed to doing all that we can to make life better for these folks in Haiti," former Philadelphia City Councilmember Jannie Blackwell said  The doors here are open, they’re open in our city."

The city has provided information on its website for people who would like to provide support for the Haitian community.

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