A month and a half in the past, Miguel Ángel bought off a bus in Los Angeles. He had been detained in an immigration heart since January, after Border Patrol officers caught him and the 4 different folks he was touring with within the Sonoran Desert.

When Miguel Ángel was launched from the middle in late April, he mentioned he was moved round varied cities in Arizona and Central California, earlier than he was given a bus ticket for L.A.

“Getting here was a surprise. I thought I would have been deported,” mentioned Miguel Ángel, who resides in a shelter downtown and whom The Times is figuring out solely by his first identify due to his undocumented standing. “I just got here … and I already found a job, so I’m happy. I already cashed my check and sent a part to my family.”

On Wednesday, a bus of 42 migrants despatched from Texas arrived in downtown Los Angeles. Some of these aboard had been from Guatemala, Miguel Ángel’s residence nation. Others got here from Venezuela, Honduras and China. Couples and households spent 23 hours on a foodless journey that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott mentioned would offer “much needed relief to Texas’ border communities.”

Miguel Ángel mentioned he struggled to know why the 42 migrants had been bused to L.A. However, he mentioned he was glad that different migrants had made their option to Los Angeles, which lately superior a “sanctuary city” ordinance.

“It’s important that other people can have opportunities and stay here,” Miguel Ángel mentioned. “Back in our country, the situation is very precarious. Everyone knows it. People even die while coming here. Some drop dead in the desert, others are kidnapped in Mexico, others are mistreated by the coyotes. Many things happen until you get here.”

Many Latino Angelenos have been paying shut consideration to the conflict over immigration coverage that pits California towards conservative states. Since final 12 months, Abbott and Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida have bused or flown hundreds of migrants to liberal cities throughout the nation. Republican officers say the actions had been necessitated by the failures of Biden administration border insurance policies. But Democrats and activists say they’re political stunts and have raised alarm over a possible lack of knowledgeable consent from a few of the transported migrants.

“It’s sad,” mentioned Guatemalan avenue meals vendor Roselia Guarchaj, who was making tortillas in a nook stand on MacArthur Park. “Because some people were thinking something else. It’s not fair.”

Although little nonetheless is understood about what the 42 migrants understood about their sponsor or their ultimate vacation spot after they boarded the bus, all of them carried cellphone numbers of individuals they knew in California, mentioned Jorge-Mario Cabrera, director of communications for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles. The cellphone numbers allowed organizers to reunite the migrants with their households and mates in San Diego, San Francisco and the L.A. space by their second night time within the state, he mentioned.

“We don’t exactly know [if they wanted to come] or not. Nobody has told us that they don’t want to be here yet,” Cabrera mentioned. “What we’re trying to investigate is when and where they have their court appointments to decide if they should stay here or go somewhere else, or if we can change the locality of their case.”

Olvera Street vendor Mayra Garcia mentioned she heard in regards to the information of the most recent bus of migrants Thursday morning whereas she was preparing for work. She expressed sympathy towards the migrants, who she mentioned “came here for a better life.”

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Mayra Garcia, 35, of Montebello works at Memo’s Place on the Placita Olvera.

(Raul Roa / Los Angeles Times en Espanol)

“All the states should be working together. I don’t know how things are in Texas, but I’ve heard there’s a lot of racism towards Hispanic people, and I think [Abbott] should have accepted part of the people there instead of just saying, ‘I’m going to wash my hands, get on the bus and let other people deal with them,’” Garcia mentioned. “What I am grateful for is that the other states haven’t said they don’t want migrants there, and that they’re accepting and helping them, which is also what’s happening in California.”

Although she thinks that Texas and Florida weren’t dealing with their immigration crises correctly, Hortencia Galván additionally sees a contradiction within the fast actions that authorities officers have taken to help the bused migrants. In her view, undocumented employees who already live within the metropolis deserve the identical stage of consideration and help from native officers.

“We all need the same opportunities,” mentioned Galván, who lives a block from the church the place the migrants had been acquired on the primary night time. “I work at a restaurant and there’s many people who don’t have papers. I see that many of them have spent 20 to 30 years here and they can’t fix them.”

Guatemala native Virgilia, who requested to be referred to by solely her first identify as a result of she has an upcoming appointment relating to the standing of her visa, mentioned she thought that the 42 migrants discovering transport to L.A. was “a miracle.”

“That’s what I’m telling people. It’s a blessing.”

After listening to in regards to the bused migrants, Notary Lesly Chavez mentioned she determined to donate garments she’d collected for different causes to the brand new arrivals. On Thursday, she drove to the Chinatown church the place most of the migrants had spent the earlier night time. By the time she bought there, although, they’d all left.

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Notary Public Lesly Chavez introduced donations for the migrants. She often collects garments for folks on Skid Row and orphanages in Mexico, typically with donations from her shoppers.

(Raul Roa / Los Angeles Times en Espanol)

Westlake resident Mary Diaz mentioned she felt that the town had loads of house to spare so lengthy as the migrants had been “good people.”

“What happened in Miami was ugly because they got migrants out of there who didn’t know where they were going to be sent,” Diaz mentioned. “Does it affect us? I don’t think so, the sun shines for everyone.”

Cabrera mentioned that Angelenos had responded to the scenario “in a beautiful way,” extending welcomes and donation provides to the migrants.

“As an immigrant, I feel the pain of our community. They’re brothers and sisters that come looking for a better future, that look for a place that welcomes them,” Cabrera mentioned. “Texas doesn’t want them, so we need to act humanely and treat these people with respect and dignity. I think Los Angeles demonstrated that drama and scandal aren’t necessary to be able to help people who need it.”