“We wanted to show them support, especially on this stormy, icy day that they are not forgotten, we are there for them”.
“We wanted to show them support, especially on this stormy, icy day that they are not forgotten, we are there for them”.
“We wanted to show them support, especially on this stormy, icy day that they are not forgotten, we are there for them”.
US President Donald Trump began the government shutdown on January 11th, in protest of Congress not approving the required funding to build his wall. As a result, some governmental agencies have had their employees on furlough and their services suspended, with others, such as border protection, required to continue working without pay.
With no TSA agent being given a paycheck since January 11th, a group from the Muslim Community of Minneapolis delivered 80 pizzas and 200 samosas to federal employees at Minneapolis Airport.
Thereafter, a group part of the Muslim Coalition of Connecticut brought lunch for employees at JFK airport in New York.
One of the group joked, “Everytime I fly, these guys have to do extra work to get me the boarding pass as my name is one of the most common names.” A TSA manager thanked them for their generosity.
In Louisville, another Muslim group, Muslim Americans for Compassion, not only brought food for all the TSA agents working at the newly named Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, but also gave them gift cards for gas and food.
The President of Muslim Americans for Compassion Muhammad Barbar said:
“We wanted to show them support, especially on this stormy, icy day that they are not forgotten, we are there for them”.
He added, “We honestly believe our fellow citizens should not be used as leverage by our politicians.”
TSA agents are now in their 5th week of working without pay. While a government shutdown is not unheard of, Trump’s government shutdown has reached historic lengths, and he has threatened to continue it until funding for his border wall is approved.
A wall bordering the United States and Mexico was one of Trump’s leading campaign promises.
