Thousands protest Trump refugee ban and travel restrictions

People gathered at major airports across the U.S. over the weekend to protest U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order targeting refugees and travellers from Muslim-majority countries.

The president barred all Syrian refugees from entering the U.S. for an unstated amount of time, banned all refugees worldwide for at least four months and issued a 90-day ban on travellers from Yemen, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Libya and Iran. 

Thousands of Americans protested at airports, already the sites of chaos and confusion as authorities worked to interpret the ever-fluctuating orders from the Trump administration, and thousands more spilled out into city streets.

New York 

One of the biggest protests was at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport, where thousands spontaneously gathered Saturday to demand the release of detained travellers. A court win by the American Civil Liberties Union has temporarily prevented authorities from deporting the 100 to 200 people who were being held at U.S. airports.

Protesters in the city are also starting to stream into New York City's Battery Park. The big crowd gathered Sunday near the ferries that carry tourists to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, the place where 12 million people entered the United States in the golden age of immigration.

Washington

More than 100 protesters and dozens of immigration attorneys have gathered at the international arrivals terminal at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C., cheering people arriving from Muslim countries.

The crowd chanted "No ban, no wall" and other slogans, and at one point sang The Star-Spangled Banner.

One woman brought pizza for the protesters.

People also took to the streets outside the White House on Sunday.

Dallas

At the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on Sunday, an estimated 200 people held signs and chanted "Let them go!" as they awaited word on what state representatives for the Council on American-Islamic Relations say are nine people detained at the airport. The council says the majority of those detained are Iranian.

Some people knelt in prayer in the baggage claims area.

Chicago

A crowd of demonstrators held a rally at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. 

The Chicago Sun-Times reports protesters blocked vehicle traffic to O'Hare's international terminal for a time. The newspaper says some arriving travellers joined the protest, while others were upset by the demonstrations.

Lawyers working with the International Refugee Assistance Project told the Chicago Tribune that 17 people who had been detained at O'Hare all were released by late Saturday.

Boston

Protesters filled Boston's Copley Square on Sunday, organized by the Massachusetts branch of the Council on American Islamic Relations.

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren spoke to the crowds Sunday, Boston.com reports.

California 

About 300 people expressed their displeasure with the ban at Los Angeles International Airport Saturday night. 

Hundreds of protesters blocked the street outside at San Francisco International Airport's international terminal.

Protests were also held in other U.S. cities, including Newark, N.J., Fairfax, Va., Portland, Ore., Denver, Colo., Seattle, Wash., San Diego, Calif., and more.