Hundreds of students from Seattle public and private schools walked out of class Thursday to demand city leaders take action against immigration enforcement, rallying from their schools to City Hall and onto 4th Avenue.
“Right now at our school, there are students who are too afraid to go outside, to come to school, to go grocery shopping,” said Garfield High School Senior Kian Naeemi. “Abolish ICE. Get them out of Washington,” added Maxwell Jones from Ballard High School. Students said they’re taking a stance against allowing immigration enforcement officials on or near their campus.
“We really want [city leaders] to invest in concrete support systems and protection measures for our vulnerable communities, and we want them to continue to defund ICE,” explained Lakeside Upper School Senior Amara Aalfs-Weinbaum. “They are already making strides and helping to protect our students and our communities broadly, but we need to continue this work and prevent a wide-scale invasion of ICE into our schools and our communities before it happens.”
No incidents related to immigration enforcement have been documented at schools. In recent weeks, unconfirmed reports of ICE activity in the broader north Seattle area caused concern and prompted six SPS schools to go into a modified lockdown. Mayor Katie Wilson spoke with some students during the rally. In late January, she signed an executive order preventing ICE from using city-owned land for enforcement, citing fears of “unpredictable, chaotic, and violent behavior of the federal government.” That includes parks, garages, and Seattle Center.
City Councilmember Robert Kettle said he’s talked with new Superintendent Ben Shuldiner and Seattle Police Department Chief Shon Barnes about students’ safety concerns. “I think there’s things that we can do and I think this is a combination of us working with the school district, but also working with our new mayor. Federal law enforcement can be in the city, but you know what, we’re taking care of business as it relates to public safety.”
While some parents and critics online said they do not condone students missing class for events like this one, or the politicization of school, this group is urging local leaders to listen to student voices. Student protesters temporarily blocked traffic along 4th and 5th avenue, causing some delays. Seattle police confirmed no incidents were reported.
