Hundreds join Waltham High walkout protesting ICE policies
Hundreds of students walked out of Waltham High School on Thursday, Feb. 12, shortly after 1 p.m. to protest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and voice concerns about immigration enforcement and its impact on students and families.
Students first gathered in the school cafeteria before moving outside to the front of the building near Lexington Street. Several students addressed the crowd about immigration enforcement and shared personal concerns related to the issue.
After the speeches, the group marched around the school’s loop road, holding signs and chanting.
Many handmade signs included messages opposing ICE and criticizing federal immigration policies. Some referenced immigration and the agency’s role in local communities.
The walkout was organized by students and promoted on social media in the days leading up to the event. School administrators and police were present during the protest. No incidents were reported.
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These walkouts and protests are misguided. An illegal alien broke into my house and attempted to kidnap my 10 month old son out of his crib. The city and state knew he was here illegally and did nothing to facilitate deportation. The time for sympathy for these people has long passed, get rid of all of them and if they want to be here they can apply for citizenship like any normal and civilized person would.
Would these students be allowed to leave school and hold signs outside in support of ice? Doubt it! Kids should be in school to learning. Now I understand why the school system is doing extremely poor. We spend more per student in this state than 90 percent of other communities . Shame on Waltham! I don’t care what side of this issue you believe in… it shouldn’t matter. They go to school to learn not push the agenda you like or the teachers. Most don’t even understand what they are protesting
I am so proud of the students at Waltham High School. It gives me so much hope that we can make a better future for all of us with them involved. Also so many really creative signs, so they can consider it an art and civics class all in one while at the same time supporting all their fellow students and their families
Proud of our HS students standing up for our Bill of Rights!
Great job kids!! We might just make it after all…
Right On! Waltham High!
It was so uplifting to read this story ( and great pics!) about our students supporting their immingrant neighbors. Waltham has long been such a successful immigrant community which is what we are all about and have been since the beginning. Thank you Joseph Sharkey!
The language in the signs are offensive, I don’t care who you support. ICE does a lot more than address illegal immigrants. If ICE were to be abolished, who will be left to fight the drug cartels? Who will work to stop human trafficking?
We have other agencies for drug law enforcement. Furthermore, at the moment, ICE is causing more harm than whatever small number of drug dealers they apprehend, almost as bycatch, could. Most of the people ICE nabs don’t have criminal records, and many are here legally. Ice has to be indiscriminate to meet the ridiculous quotas, which limits the resources they can expend on going after REAL bad guys. And then there are the occasional US citizens they arrest or murder. They are murdering the Constitution as well.
In any case, when ICE ignores due process, what they’re doing is kidnapping, not law enforcement. It sure looks like their new function is to terrorize people with accents, who have “too much” melanin, or who dare to film or criticize.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SUPPORTING US! WE LOVE AND APPRECIATE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU GUYS AND ALWAYS REMEMBER NO ONE IS ILLEGAL ON A STOLEN LAND! THE ONLY THING STRONGER THAN HATE IS LOVE💙