Along the access route to the popular Wrightsville Beach, local agencies such as the Immigrant Allies Forum, Indivisible Wilmington, and the Wilmington Chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America held a public demonstration. The protestors aimed to make holidaymakers aware of the principle to ‘fly their values.’ The timing and location for this display was deliberate to reach a large population of transient people in relation to Avelo’s partnership with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) existing from earlier this year, involving deportation flights.
The protest organizer expressed concerns about the county resources allocated to Avelo for promoting Wilmington and several other destinations targeting to attract more tourists. The message was to create awareness about the potential human rights implications of opting for a budget flight. Specifically, to emphasize that the low ticket cost might come with a weighty moral cost.
Avelo Airlines, a cost-efficient aviation service provider, operates in 23 states. The airline broadened its business in Wilmington opening a new operational base in April. Following its establishment, a surge in protests blanketed the city.
The initial protest targeting Avelo was held directly in front of the city’s airport in May. Recently, this protest was part of a coordinated nationwide campaign planned to apply financial pressure by advocating a boycott on the airline after the controversial deal.
The awareness campaign is no longer limited to the local level — it has been elevated to a national cause. The protest thus included participants from across the country, from the places where Avelo maintains its business presence.
Explanations were offered by protestors: Avelo Airlines distinguishes itself as the only commercial airline to enter into a contract with ICE. They are known for operating deportation flights from Arizona to El Salvador. Their call to action was clear, asking people to stop using Avelo’s services.
Bringing about a consensus on immigration matters and influencing public opinion can be an uphill battle. Therefore, protestors are focusing their efforts towards influencing passengers’ airline choices. Both at the local and national levels, the goal is to get travelers to reconsider their preferred airline.
It seems that the efforts of these advocates are yielding some results. Notably, Avelo was reported to have suspended some of its flights and scaled back its operations — though not in Wilmington, but other parts of the country. The vision is that local mobilization could effectuate significant changes.
Avelo has not remained silent amidst the uproar. The airline’s defense cites its pursuit of financial stability as the reason behind its cooperation with ICE.
In a bid for transparency, a steering committee member representing one of the advocacy groups lodged a public records request with the New Hanover County Airport Authority. After a couple of months, the Deputy Airport Director revealed in his response that there was no financial backing provided or any additional budget amendments favoring Avelo.
The airport official further shared details of Avelo’s lease agreement stating that it mirrors those made with all airlines operating out of ILM. Enclosed with his response were details of the authority’s incentive scheme which applies universally. However, ongoing correspondence eventually led to the confirmation of local marketing expenditure for promoting Avelo flights and the ILM airport.
Since its inception, Avelo’s impact on the local economy has not gone unnoticed. But one protestor countered the idea that the airline was positively influencing the area, saying that correlating Avelo’s contribution to the $1.1 billion tourism expenditure in New Hanover County was a convoluted notion.
The protestor pointed out that the annual GDP for the county still remained less than $20 billion in the last fiscal year. Therefore, it’s difficult to assign credit for a significant share of economic activity solely to Avelo. He insisted that this argument overshadows the pressing ethical question.
The debate at hand isn’t merely about weighing economic gains, but rather confronting a sizable ethical dilemma. The protestor asked whether potential profits should justify turning a blind eye to Avelo facilitating in what has been termed as ‘illegal and inhumane deportation flights’. Moreover, what kind of monetary worth does society assign to its moral values if it continues to ignore these practices.
The crux of the debate penned by the protestor is as simple as it is profound: Is the society willing to ignore the questionable practices of a profitable entity due to the benefits they offer? This question continues to hang in the balance as Avelo maintains its operations and protestors remain vehement in their advocacy.
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