Protesters demand ICE agents to leave Philadelphia International Airport: "The solution is to pay TSA"

Protesters gathered outside Terminal B at Philadelphia International Airport on Tuesday and demanded that ICE agents leave the city. They are also standing in solidarity with TSA workers amid the government shutdown. 

"We want ICE out of this airport immediately, and the solution is to pay TSA now," Rosslyn Wuchinich, the president of UNITE HERE Local 247, said.

Over the past week, ICE agents were deployed to airports across the country to help with staffing shortages and long security lines during the partial government shutdown. 

Last week, President Trump signed an executive order for DHS to pay TSA workers, who haven't received paychecks in weeks. 

TSA officers confirmed to CBS News Philadelphia that they started receiving back pay on Monday morning.

But the future still remains uncertain as Congress failed to reach a deal. CBS News Philadelphia reached out to DHS for comment, but we haven't heard back. 

"This has got to end," said Philip Glover, who is the national vice president of the American Federation of Government employees in District 3. "This shutdown got to end. These employees deserved to be paid their full amount of wages." 

"It's critical to be out here today," Wuchinich said. "We all need to be out here and get ICE out of our airports and make sure TSA workers are paid." 

Protesters said many of the TSA workers are struggling on a daily basis. Many even missed work because they couldn't afford to get there without their paychecks. 

"These are your neighbors. These are the people that live in your community," Daisy Cruz, the district director of SEIU 32BJ, said. "They are suffering. They are coming to work every single day. They can't pay their rent. Their utilities are being turned off. They cannot put food on the table. That's a reality of what's going on. People are living paycheck to paycheck." 

White House officials said that ICE agents will remain at airports nationwide until they feel they are running at 100%

Protesters said they will continue to stand up for one another.

"We want to make sure we are standing in solidarity," Keturah Johnson, the international vice president of the Association of Flight Attendants, said. "It's Philly. Philly is a union town. We came out to show support."