ICE agents were sent to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on March 23. On Monday, roughly 50 protesters gathered at the airport to demand that they leave.
TSA agents did not get paid for about a month due to an ongoing government shutdown. That caused several agents to quit or call out of work, leading to longer lines at some airports.
In response, President Donald Trump deployed ICE agents to a handful of airports to assist the TSA. As of Monday, TSA agents began receiving paychecks again.
But Dania Duran said she and other protesters still see a problem — the possibility of ICE taking on a bigger role in airports.
Although both the TSA and ICE operate out of the Department of Homeland Security, Duran said she stands with TSA workers and against ICE agents.
“They are wildly different and they operate wildly different,” she said. “Their parameters are wildly different, there’s not as much oversight for ICE as there is for TSA.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said ICE will continue working with the TSA for “as long as the president determines necessary.” The agency did not clarify how many ICE agents — if any — are still working at Sky Harbor.
No ICE agents were visible in the departures or arrivals lobbies of Terminal 4 on Monday evening. No agents appeared to be guiding passengers through security checkpoints there, either.
A Sky Harbor spokesperson said all airport checkpoints are open, but declined to say whether most of the TSA workforce is back at Sky Harbor, or whether ICE agents are still present.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Dania Duran's name.
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