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Protests Continue For Second Day At Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport

(Photo by Jimmy Jenkins)
Siblings Omar and Nahil Ismail said they were heartened by the number and diversity of supporters at the protest

Protests against President Trump’s executive immigration order continued in Phoenix on Sunday. Hundreds of people came to Terminal 4 at Sky Harbor Airport to stand in solidarity with demonstrators across the country.

Mazim Mohmed came to Phoenix two years ago seeking political asylum from Sudan, one of the seven countries whose citizens are now banned from traveling to the United States.

“Back home we have like a bad situation," Mohmed said. "We have a dictatorship that doesn’t allow us to express ourselves. There is no democracy. There is nothing.”

Mohmed said he was imprisoned several times for political speech in his home country. Now that he’s here in the United States, he said he’ll continue to fight for the ideals of freedom and justice that brought him here in the first place.

Nahil Ismail grew up in Mesa and her family is from Pakistan. She said the large, diverse gathering of people showing support for Muslims brings her a sense of hope. "There’s no limit to how many races there are here now," Ismail said as she looked at the growing crowd in awe. "This is America, this little block right here, this is America and I feel safe here.”

Ismail and her brother said they have been discriminated against for their background and their religion in the past, but they’ve decided that now is the time to stand up for their rights.

While many airports around the country ended up detaining travelers from foreign countries, Sky Harbor said there were no detentions this weekend in Phoenix.

Jimmy Jenkins was a producer and senior field correspondent at KJZZ from 2014 to 2021.