NYC High School Forced Into Remote Teaching As Migrants Move In For A Night...Or More

Students at a Brooklyn High School were forced into remote learning mode on Wednesday as their school was suddenly turned into a "temporary" shelter for migrants whose tents were deemed unsafe amid stormy weather.  

An unspecified number migrants will sleep on the floor of James Madison High School's gym. They're among nearly 2,000 who were evacuated on Tuesday from a tent complex at Floyd Bennett Field, a former municipal airport in southeast Brooklyn that's now a federally-managed recreation area.

As harsh weather hits the region, authorities say they were concerned about two perils: flooding and wind. Gusts of up to 70mph were anticipated, alongside heavy rain. In a dark comic twist, conditions at the site are more dangerous thanks to federal regulations: Since the old airfield is an historic site, tent stakes are prohibited. 

"We want to make sure that people are safe," New York City mayor Eric Adams told reporters, saying the evacuation as motivated "out of an overabundance of caution." 

"This is fucked up," a local resident named Rob told the New York Post. "It's a litmus test. They are using a storm, a legitimate situation, where they are testing this out. I guarantee you they'll be here for the entire summer."

Rob's primary concern isn't education, but rather security. "There's 1,900 people getting thrown into my neighborhood, half a block from where I live and we don't know who they are. They're not vetted. A lot of them have criminal records and backgrounds and we don't even know."

The city waited for the conclusion of after-school activities to move the migrants in. As more than a dozen buses pulled up, one mother identified as Michelle, verbally confronted the incoming migrants, reports the Post: "How does it feel that you kicked all the kids out of school tomorrow? Does it feel good? I hope you feel good. I hope you will sleep very well tonight!" A dad chimed in, "How do you feel stealing American tax money?"

According to a notice posted by the Libs of TikTok Twitter account, James Madison students are supposed to work on assignments rather than actually receiving instruction. "Teachers will be available via zoom if requested prior by email," read a graphic that purportedly came from the school. 

The high school takeover was initially described as a one-night affair. However, City Hall spokeswoman Kayla Mamelak hedged, telling reporters, "The relocation will continue until any weather conditions that may arise have stabilized and the facility is once again fit for living."

Migrants had previously endured some harrowing times at the tent complex. During a Dec. 18 storm, some migrants said they feared the tents were about to be shredded, and were simply told they could leave whenever they want.  

A GOP councilwoman told the Post her warnings against using the historic airfield went unheeded. "Floyd Bennett Field is entirely unsuitable for a tent complex, and how we are wasting tax-payer dollars to evacuate nearly 2,000 people when they should have been placed somewhere like the Park Slope Armory," said Joann Ariola "This did not take a fortune teller to predict."

Last week, Adams warned that the migrant population was on the verge of spilling out across city streets, as the sanctuary city is "inundated" with global diversity. "We're not just saying we're out of room as a sound bite, we're out of room literally. People are going to be eventually sleeping on the streets," he told FOX5 New York. 

In October, we reported on the city's aggressive new play in the increasingly intense game of Illegal Immigrant Hot Potato, as City Hall started handing out plane tickets to anywhere but the Big Apple.