Protest erupts at BWI over Trump’s ‘Muslim Ban’
Less than a week after his inauguration, hundreds of concerned Marylanders descended Sunday night on Baltimore Washington International-Marshall Airport (BWI) to protest President Trump’s recent executive order on immigration. The peaceful protest – which began at 5 p.m. – lasted until about 8 p.m.
Trump’s executive order, titled, “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States,” has angered civil libertarians and set off a firestorm of protests worldwide. But legal analysts — while not necessarily condoning the action — seem to agree that the president acted within the parameters of his statutory authority in issuing an order he believes will guard against foreign terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.
It is unknown how many were actually on hand for the demonstration; however, the entire lower concourse in terminal E was packed with protesters. Half of the upstairs portion of the terminal was also packed, although the other half was restricted to everyone by police.
Terminal E at BWI is used by the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command, as well as international carriers such as British Air, Norwegian and Sunwing. Persons coming off the international flights did not appear to interact very much with the protesters – choosing instead to quickly exit the area.
Uniting with the protesters at BWI was former Governor Martin O’Malley. The one-time Democrat presidential hopeful was joined by fellow Democrat U.S. Representatives Elijah Cummings, John Delaney, Dutch Ruppersberger and John Sarbanes.
As the European and Middle Eastern gateway for the Air Mobility Command, BWI is often awash in a sea of camouflage. This was certainly the case last night, as we observed outbound military personnel awaiting their flights. The soldiers quietly looked on, as the protesters chanted, “No hate, No fear – Refugees are welcome here”.
Most of the protesters were polite to the servicemen and women.
It was also our observation that the MDTA Police appeared overwhelmed, disorganized and flustered – this in spite of the fact that we observed no violence or verbal altercations. One airport official (who did not wish to be named) commented, “This feels a little like the Vietnam era, with the protesters and the soldiers at the airport terminal.”
The following video and photo roundup of last night’s BWI – Trump protest are the work of contributing photographer Michael Jordan.
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