On Sunday, DFW airport was packed with protestors upset about what many are calling a “Muslim ban.” (Photo by Michelle Meals)
Hundreds flocked to DFW International Airport Saturday to protest what many felt were unlawful and immoral bans on travel put in place by President Donald Trump on Friday. They included Lower Greenville attorney and former City Councilwoman Angela Hunt (an Advocate columnist) and Swiss Avenue attorney Chris Hamilton, who were intent on leading the charge to release at least nine people who were detained by the Department of Homeland Security.
Angela Hunt. (Photo by Danny Fulgencio)
DFW released a statement that all detainees have been released, but Hunt said in a Facebook post they have reason to believe there are others still being held, not to mention those who are traveling abroad currently who could be blocked from returning to America. They have vowed to continue fighting what they call an unlawful executive order, working with a network of attorneys both here in Dallas and across the nation.
More than 100 attorneys lent their free services to help the detainees, who included parents of an SMU student, children and green-card holders. Locked in a “war room” in the Grand Hyatt, they fought for access to represent those affected while simultaneously finding legal challenges to the tenets of the executive order.
“Customs and border patrol would not provide information and denied access to counsel for the detainees,” she wrote. “We have been in contact with attorneys at airports across the county and have learned that what we have been experiencing at DFW airport has been occurring at airports across the United States. The attorneys in each city are communicating and coordinating a national strategy to fight this executive order in federal courts across the country.”
You can keep up with the group’s activity on Facebook or Twitter, while a GuFundMe account has been set up to offset the cost of renting a conference room at the airport and other non-labor expenses.
Protests against President Trump’s “Muslim ban” went on all weekend. (Photo by Michelle Meals)
