From Arleta to Reseda, high school and middle school students joined together for an “All Valley Protest” against President Donald Trump’s immigration policies and the threat of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids.
Despite school administrators’ attempts to prevent demonstrations, students across the San Fernando Valley staged walkouts at their respective schools on Friday, Feb. 28, and marched to Van Nuys City Hall, where they convened for a mass rally.
“Their policies are tearing families apart, and as students, we’re here to say, ‘enough!’” said Jazlyn Galdamez, a student organizer from Valor Academy High School, located in North Hills.
What was expected to be over 20 schools and around 700 students participating, had a much smaller turnout of around half those numbers. This was in part because of active suppression from some of the schools, including a letter from a principal highlighting the importance of attendance and threats of being dropped from extracurricular activities.
“Students have always played a role in shaping justice, and us doing this, we’re continuing that legacy from the civil rights movement to the Chicano [student] walkouts of 1968,” said Jazlyn.
When it was discovered that there were discrepancies in the education of Anglo and Mexican-American students in Los Angeles, students, teachers, parents and activists began organizing in what became known as the East LA Walkouts of 1968. Around 15,000 students walked out of their classrooms calling for curriculum changes, bilingual education and hiring of Mexican-American administrators. Although arrests were made and the LA Board of Education rejected their proposals, it remains one of the largest student protests in U.S. history and an example of Latino youth standing up for civil rights.
“We’re not doing it to get out of school,” said Jazlyn. “We’re doing it so that our voices are heard.”
Fighting for the Future Their Families Envisioned
For many San Fernando Valley students, Trump’s threats of mass deportations hit close to home – it could mean being separated from a loved one.
Although the mass ICE actions anticipated to take place in LA at the end of February were limited to just a few detentions, there has been an uptick in activity and immigration enforcement sightings throughout the county. As a result, fear and anxiety about the future are permeating throughout immigrant communities.
“We’re walking out, not just for ourselves, but for those who can’t,” said Jazlyn. “For the people that are scared to speak up, for the families that have been separated, and just for the millions of people that contribute every day and they’re treated like they don’t belong.”
Jazlyn comes from a family of Salvadoran immigrants, who “left everything behind … their home country, their families,” to start over to provide a better future for themselves and their children.
“We’re seeing our families scared to go to work. We’re seeing our families scared to leave the house, and it’s heartbreaking,” she said. “I’m [protesting] doing this for my Grandma, I’m doing it for my uncles, I’m doing it for my dad, I’m doing it for everybody that doesn’t have a voice.”
California is home to 10.6 million immigrants, which makes up 22% of the nation’s foreign-born population, according to research from the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), a nonprofit and nonpartisan think tank. Further, almost half (45%) of California children have at least one immigrant parent.
The Pew Research Center estimates that 3.3% of the nation’s total population (23% of the foreign-born population) are undocumented, and around 4.4 million United States-born children under 18 live with an “unauthorized” immigrant parent.
This is a reality for many valley students, who took turns speaking on a megaphone at the rally.
“I see ICE patrolling everywhere. It sucks because my mom is an immigrant and is part of the LGBT community,” said a student from Sun Valley. “This is the worst that it’s been and I am scared of being separated from my mother.”
“Stop tearing families apart!” one student yelled.
“My grandma got deported,” wailed another.
“We have rights that cannot be stripped away – not without a fight,” said a student wearing a Mexico jersey, who added their family came here for a better future.
“I will stand for their dreams and the future they came for, because we are their future, we are the next generation,” they continued. “They can kick us out of their stolen lands again, but they cannot take away or erase the impact we’ve made. Without us there is no United States.”
A New Generation Learn How to Organize
For many of the valley students, this was their first time organizing and demonstrating, which they discovered, is not without its hurdles.
Jazlyn said social media made it easy to get the word out, “but when it came to organizing, that’s when it was tough.”
A fairly large contingent of students from Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies rallied despite discouragement from the administration.
The day before the walkout, Principal Susie Parker sent out a schoolwide message that read:
“Today, we became aware of a potential student walkout/demonstration that will be held off-campus tomorrow. Attendance is important and we encourage all of our students to come to school daily. To provide support for our students, counselors are available.”
School attendance directly affects how much funding each LA Unified School District (LAUSD) school receives. Since the passing of Proposition 98, state funding has been distributed primarily based on “average daily attendance.”
Student co-organizer Ambar Muralles Alfaro said although Principal Rebecca McMurrin at Ulysses S. Grant High School supported her students’ right to protest, some teachers and coaches pressured students not to participate.
“We faced a lot of issues,” added co-organizer Analyse Bermudes. “A lot of people in clubs and sports were told that they were gonna be kicked out if they went to go protest.”
“It’s very helpful to have people like Ms. McMurrin,” said Ambar, “because at Arleta they were closing their gates. They were closing them in.”
This is the second wave of walkouts organized by valley students. At the walkouts earlier in February, organizers from other schools said they passed Arleta High School, encouraging students to join them, but the administration locked the gates, not allowing the students from Arleta to leave.
There were only a few students from Arleta at the All Valley Protest, who reiterated how their school also used clubs and sports as a deterrent.
“Arleta is one of the strictest schools in the valley, and they don’t encourage us to go and protest,” said Evelyn, who requested her last name be omitted. “One of my teachers told me to not go protest, but I came anyway.”
Bert Corona Charter Middle and High Schools – named after the famous labor and immigrant rights leader – took a different approach with their students, sending administrative personnel to attend the protest as observers and watch over the students’ safety.
One of the biggest obstacles across all the schools was the Phone-Free School Act (AB 3216) signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom, which restricts the use of smartphones on school campuses.
Ulysses S. Grant co-organizer Isabel Bustos said originally students wanted to walk out around lunch time, but the threat of having phones confiscated or locked away for the entire school day, pushed them to start the rally in the morning.
As to keep their smartphones, students made plans to meet in front of the entrance before school started, rather than stage a proper walkout. This decision, some organizers believe, also led to less participation due to students being late and because of the inability to rally together once on campus.
The three Ulysses S. Grant co-organizers, Isabel, Analyse and Ambar, said this won’t be the last demonstration they participate in.
“A lot of people think one and done,” said Ambar. “But one protest is not going to make a difference. It’s going to take days, months, let’s hope not years.”
With each effort they feel as though they are becoming more knowledgeable about organizing and how to overcome the hurdles they may face.
“Expressing ourselves out here through peaceful protests, you know, this is a way we can get to the lawmakers and let them know what we want,” said Isabel.
“[My mom’s] always telling me, ‘go out there, use your voice,’” added Analyse. “‘If they can’t be out here to fight, then you have to do it for them.’”