by Scott Barker
Students at Peninsula High School joined a nationwide movement Friday, January 30 walking out of class around 10 a.m. to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations they say constitute an abuse of power.
Approximately 500 students from Peninsula High School and about 100 other students and parents gathered in a school parking lot where student leaders, including Student Council President Sasha Skylar and organizer Mayah Singh Barrett, rallied their peers before marching to the corner of Hawthorne Boulevard and Silver Spur Road carrying homemade signs.
The walkout reflected growing concerns among young people about recent ICE actions in California and across the country. Students specifically cited the death of Alex Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse and community watch organizer in Minnesota who was killed during an ICE protest this past month.
“When you’re a young person that is interested in activism or wants to get involved politically, there’s a sense that your voice doesn’t matter or that you can’t get involved because those are adult-led spaces,” Singh Barrett said. “So we thought the school was the perfect place to do something like this.”
The demonstration drew both support and opposition from passing motorists. At least one truck drove past the rally honking an air horn while flying an American flag and a flag bearing President Trump’s name in apparent defiance of the protest.
Student Samiya Portugal framed the issue beyond partisan politics. “This is no longer a political issue, it’s a humanitarian issue,” she said.
The walkout was organized by Singh Barrett along with fellow students Alex Wilner, Nathan Li, Elise Vu, and Alexa Lee. Pen
Correction: Initial student protestors reported was 150, however, that number was closer to 500.
These stupid children just outed themselves as people who are not wanted on the campus of any decent university. Think about that, When you get your rejection letters. And later in life when nobody will give you a job.
If everyone lived in fear, the hard bought freedoms you and your family have today would not be there. This is America! They’re allowed to exercise their right as stated in the first amendment. I mean why is it in the constitution otherwise