ICE detentions at airports spark backlash against Southwest Airlines
A viral video showing Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detaining a woman as she attempted to board a Southwest Airlines flight in Colorado has sparked backlash against the Dallas-based carrier.
The moment ICE agents detained Chantal Rojas at the gate has been viewed more than 1 million times online.
"I couldn't possibly keep up with the comments ... and I think it has gotten Chantal the attention that she really should get for being unlawfully detained," Alicia Dantzker said.
The video, recorded by Dantzker, has prompted some travelers to say they plan to cancel future flights and boycott the airline.
In response to questions about the arrest, Southwest said the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security have access to passenger information through the federal screening process. In a statement, the airline said Southwest "complies with applicable state and federal law."
DHS said Rojas is from Ecuador and overstayed a visa that expired in January 2025.
Her attorney, however, said she filed the appropriate paperwork before her visa expired and has remained in the country with authorization while her immigration case is pending.
"She came here in 2023 on a J-1 visa to be a nanny for a dear friend, who said she has taught them so much about babies," Dantzker said. "She is being really strong, and she has told us that she is safe. I'm just so grateful that the world, the country, and people outside of it, that they're paying attention and that they're horrified."
Fundraising efforts have grown for both Rojas and Southwest flight attendant Lorenzo Thompson, who ICE arrested at Nashville International Airport on July 14.
The agency said Thompson, a Jamaican national, legally entered the United States in 2021 with authorization to stay for six months but remained after that authorization expired.
"I think anytime you see anybody being terrified and essentially abducted from something in their everyday life, that gets attention," Dantzker said.
She hopes the attention surrounding her video continues to generate support for Rojas as her immigration case moves forward.
CBS News Texas reached out to Southwest to see whether the airline would like to respond to the most recent criticism on social media. The station has not yet heard back.
