* As we’ve been discussing, on October 20th, the City of Chicago reported that 28 buses carrying migrants had arrived in the previous seven days. That was down from 53 during the week ending October 6. On October 27, that weekly number had fallen to 16, and was reported as 15 a week later. This past week, the number remained at 15 buses. The Sun-Times has finally noticed the trend…

After two months of ballooning bus arrivals in Chicago that stretched the resources of the city and volunteers, the number of buses coming into the city has slowed, and the number of migrants at police stations is at its lowest point in months.

On Monday, around 2,300 migrants were awaiting shelter at police stations and airports, the fewest since late September, according to data from the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications. Bus arrivals are back down to a couple a day from roughly nine a day.

The slowing rate of arrivals and falling number staying at police stations comes with winter just around the corner, something advocates have feared could put the health of thousands at risk.

The 1,800 migrants still camped out at police stations, with freezing weather coming, is down 33% from just a week ago.

The number of new arrivals in staging areas dropped about 22 percent, from 3,228 the previous week to 2,529 by last Friday. This is a trend we’ve noticed for a while now.

The number of new leases signed jumped to 640 in October, from 125 in July. Again, same upward trend that’s been happening for months.

Fox 32 picked up the Sun-Times story, so maybe the word will finally spread.

* Meanwhile…

As a sense of urgency grows, with winter fast approaching, Chicago’s mayor says he is looking to shore up support with influential pastors as the city efforts migrant relief. […]

Addressing the latest concerns at the Indiana Avenue Pentecostal Church of God in Bronzeville, Johnson was joined by Bishop Simon Gordon with the Triedstone Church of Chicago. Gordon asked Chicagoans to stand with their mayor as the city navigates their plans for the unhoused.

“We have to be good citizens and be able to accept and deal with those who come in to be a part of the process,” Gordon said.

* At that same press conference, a reporter asked this…

Have you ever considered turning the buses around? The buses arrived here saying, You know what, there’s no more room at the inn. We can no longer have the capacity to take anyone else. Maybe it’s time to turn the buses around.

And how would the city do that? Surround the buses with armed police officers and force people to go where they don’t want to go? I can think of a few laws off the top of my head that this would be violating. Also, are they going to put armed officers on buses full of people here legally until they reach city limits?

Do reporters even stop to think for one second before they pop off like that? That person sounded like George Wallace at the school house door, for crying out loud.

Not to mention that the phrase “no more room at the inn” was uttered at a Christian church, of all places.

* From Isabel…

* Fox Chicago | Chicago law firm steps up to assist migrants free of charge: Compelled to help, Anderson teamed up with his law firm’s pro bono attorneys and other agencies, like the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC), to host a series of free legal clinics. Those sessions served to educate new arrivals on their rights, and guide them on what to do next. “To apply for work permits, to apply for a change of venue – to move their hearings from, let’s say, Denver to Chicago. And fundamentally, just to register their whereabouts with the Department of Homeland Security. So they needed to go online basically,” said Anderson. Meanwhile, city officials have launched a pilot program for a one-stop work authorization clinic that aims to serve at least 150 migrants per day. It’s being done in partnership with the White House and The Resurrection Project (TRP).

* Pioneer Press | Oak Park taking the lead on ‘coordinated western suburban response’ to migrant crisis, looking for others to partner, officials say: Oak Park resident Derek Eder also voiced his support for the the village rendering aid. “Let’s show them that love wins over fear, and let’s show them that diversity is strength. Let’s show them that this crisis is actually an opportunity to enrich the lives of our new arrivals and to enrich the lives of our own village,” Eder said. “Let’s show them what Oak Park really stands for.”

* WGN | CPD officers helps migrant kids write new stories with donated books: Officer Jesus Magallon began his mission to hand out books to the children, newly arrived in Chicago over the summer. He saw the children of those newly arrived migrants and noticed they didn’t have any books. He set out to change that. […] He has given away hundreds so far. Many of them came from Bernie’s Book Bank on the North Shore.

* Sun-Times Editorial Board | Catholic Charities of San Antonio does Chicago no favors by failing to give a heads-up when migrants are on the way: Catholic Charities of San Antonio said in a statement: “Catholic Charities does not direct or suggest travel to any specific location, and migrants have been advised at times not to travel to certain areas due to a possible lack of services. However, Catholic Charities cannot prevent migrants from traveling to their preferred locale.” But parts of those statements are hard to square with migrants who have told the Sun-Times they chose Chicago based on a recommendation by Catholic Charities of San Antonio. San Antonio is among the first stops for many migrants. Its local Catholic Charities operates the Migrant Resource Center. When migrants insist that Chicago is their choice, at least give city officials or Catholic Charities in Chicago some notice. A phone call will do.