OCEANSIDE, Calif. (KGTV) — People from all over the world have crossed into San Diego to seek asylum. On Monday, Supervisor Jim Desmond tweeted that over 19,000 migrants came in one month. Local nonprofits are feeling the impact.
"NGOs had to carry the burden to make sure people are safe and alive," said Max Disposti, the founder of North County’s LGBTQ Resource Center.
Disposti says the center has worked over the last year to connect migrants with their families and help them purchase tickets out of San Diego.
"We invested a lot of our own resources without knowing whether it would come back to us or not," he says.
The county says they’re giving $3 million to one NGO helping asylum seekers. That NGO will take the lead and then work with others to spread the impact. The funding will come from the American Rescue Plan. But Disposti believes the funding will go to the South Bay, where many asylum-seekers are arriving.
"Do you know when you'll find out if you receive a portion of this funding?" asked ABC 10News reporter Perla Shaheen.
"I think you might know more than I do before I do. I'm not expecting that," Disposti says.
The county says the Chief Administrative Office is still working to identify the NGO that will receive this funding.
