Hundreds march near Fresno Yosemite International Airport to protest Trump order

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Hundreds of people gathered near the Fresno-Yosemite International Airport Sunday afternoon to protest President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration.

The order, issued on Friday, placed a travel ban on seven predominantly Muslim countries and has led to the detention of several travelers with legal visas to the United States.

Trump said the order is an issue of national security and meant to prevent "radical Islamic terrorists" from entering the country, however, critics call the order racist and discriminatory towards people from the Middle East.

The announcement of the order has led to major protests at airports throughout the country, including New York and San Francisco, and demonstrators organized a protest in Fresno on Sunday.

That demonstration wrapped up a little after 6:30 p.m. Many of the people who were out said they came because they want immigrants in America and here in the Central Valley to know they support them.

With signs in their hands, hundreds of protestors marched from the corner of Clinton and Peach Avenues up to the terminal at the Fresno Yosemite International Airport, making their voices heard about new restrictions on immigration.

"I'm frustrated by it," protestor Allyson Kahn said. "And I'm especially frustrated that a President can have so much power."

"I think treating Muslims differently in our country will just cause them to radicalize and create more terrorism," Ellen Kahn added.

Since the ban took effect, refugees and immigrants have been detained at airports across the country.

Benjamin Davis spent some time living in Lahore, Pakistan. He feels what the President is doing is wrong.

"Most of my neighbors were Muslim and just the nicest people I ever met in my entire life," he said. "And it's just hurtful to see people like them who are genuinely good people are now not allowed in the United States."

The protest interrupted terminal traffic, forcing drivers to slow down while picking up or dropping off passengers. But passengers like Obina Calijo did not mind. He just flew in from Phoenix and says a similar protest was happening there.

"I was surprised, just by the number, the sheer size that was out it seems. People feel really strongly about what is going on," Calijo said.

And that is one message many at this protest were sharing, saying they will not stop until something changes.

"What we've been doing our whole lives is fighting," Kathy said. "And now other people are starting to feel it, so we just have to come together and stand up for each other."

Airport security says the protest was very peaceful. The only thing they had to do was redirect traffic at the terminal.

A federal judge issued an emergency order Saturday night that blocked the further deportation of travelers with visas.