Kent high school students hit streets to protest ICE

Students took to the streets from four Kent high schools recently to protest against the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that killed two protesters in Minneapolis and its continual efforts to remove thousands of immigrants from the country.

The fatal shootings by ICE agents of protesters Renee Good and Alex Pretti, each U.S. citizens, by federal authorities last month in Minneapolis ignited protests across the nation, the state, regionally and at Kentridge, Kentwood, Kentlake and Kent-Meridian high schools, each part of the Kent School District.

“At the very least it sends a message that the people aren’t happy with what’s happening,” freshman Claire Deleeuw said while protesting Feb. 2 on SE 212th Street sidewalk in front of the Kentridge campus. “At the end of the day, the government still has power, but if enough people come together, it’s possible to overturn at least parts of what’s currently happening.”

Students led anti-ICE walkouts Jan. 30 at Kentlake and Jan. 27 at Kentwood and Kent-Meridian. Middle school students also are organizing protests, including Mattson Middle School, in Covington, where students will have a walkout on Feb. 6.

“Every other Kent School District school has also participated in ICE protests,” said Kentridge freshman Claire Henry. “I think it’s great we’re all coming together to stop this.”

Henry said the ICE shootings in Minneapolis made her mad and ready to take a stand.

“What’s happening right now in our country is not constitutional at all and I think that we should fight for that as a community to stop that from happening,” Henry said.

Henry didn’t have an excused absence to participate in the Tuesday morning walkout.

“We do not have excused absences and all of your absences will stay through the whole year, which I think that is kind of a problem,” Henry said. “But I don’t make the rules so there’s nothing I can do about that.”

Kent-Meridian Principal David Radford sent an email to school parents and families prior to that school’s walkout telling them “this is not an authorized school event.”

Radford said parents should speak with their students about the advantages (pros) and disadvantages (cons) of engaging in this activity. He said walkout absences not excused by a parent will be treated as truancy (unexcused absence).

“We encourage our students to be actively engaged citizens who are knowledgeable about multiple viewpoints surrounding current events,” Radford said. “Students are taught how to participate in our democracy in a variety of ways that might include addressing lawmakers through letters, creative works that help express how they feel about an issue and discussions. Through these kinds of experiences, our students learn the skills they need to form, support and express their own personal positions on issues.”

For hundreds of students, a walkout to oppose ICE became their form of expression.

“I feel like what’s happening with ICE isn’t really OK,” said Kentridge junior Miles Lacour about his participation in the protest. “I can’t really do anything about it because I can’t vote yet. I feel this is the most I can do to support the cause.”

President Donald Trump ran for reelection in 2024 on a campaign that included a promise “to end the scourge of illegal immigration and deport illegal aliens,” according to the federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) website.

Under Kristi Noem, U.S. secretary of Homeland Security, DHS has arrested and deported hundreds of thousands of criminal illegal aliens across the country, including gang members, rapists, kidnappers, and drug traffickers, thanks to the brave men and women of ICE, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and other law enforcement immigration enforcement agencies, according to the DHS website. DHS claims 70% of those arrested by ICE are criminal illegal aliens who have been charged or convicted of a crime in the U.S.

According to FactCheck.com, however, a nonpartisan, nonprofit consumer advocate and a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, its analysis of ICE arrest data shows many of the immigrants have no criminal record.

“(Our analysis) found a doubling over time of the percentage without criminal records, meaning neither convictions nor charges,” according to the report. “In Trump’s first three months in office, 21.9% of those arrested had no criminal record. The percentage rose to 34.2% in Trump’s second three months, and then to 40.5% in the three months ending in mid-October. In January, nearly 43% of those detained had no convictions or charges, according to publicly available ICE data.

Deleeuw said the removal of thousands of immigrants were personal and inspired her to participate in the walkout.

“My dad is an immigrant and my stepdad is first-generation after both of his parents were immigrants, so it’s a very important thing to me that immigrants are being treated the way that they are and I don’t support the way they are being treated,” Deleeuw said. “It’s important for me to protest that.”

Deleeuw said her dad is from The Netherlands while her stepdad and both of his parents are from Mexico.

“I feel at this point it’s not even about illegal immigrants, but just about the color of your skin, and that’s not right,” Deleeuw said. “Racially profiling people to throw them into vans and send them somewhere is not the way to deal with it, even if it was a problem. I think we have much bigger issues to focus on now than someone’s race.”

Deleeuw said she has learned about immigration in English language arts and history classes at Kentridge.

“It’s very important to learn about with the current political climate of our country,” she said. “We talked about how immigrants make up 14% of the population (in the U.S.) but they run 18% of the small businesses. They offer more in taxes than they gain in benefits and yet we still argue that they’re a threat to the current economy because they mooch off of our taxes, but they contribute more than they get.”

While the Kentridge walkout began at the school, students eventually walked west along South 212th Street to the busy intersection with 108th Avenue SE to chant sayings and wave signs. School district security officers kept watch on the protest near campus.

The walkout was truly personal for Kentridge sophomore Marina Garcia.

“I have friends that have been deported and I want to speak for them because they cannot speak because they are gone,” said Garcia, who apologized to a reporter for her somewhat broken English. “I want to speak louder for them.”

Garcia said she has friends and family who were deported more than a year ago to Brazil and Columbia.

“I miss them, I miss my family, my friends,” Garcia said. “It’s something really sad.”

The deportations helped motivate Garcia to take to the streets to protest.

“I hope people see what’s happening,” she said. “People are dying. People are getting deported. Immigrants help the country. They were working to have a best life, and moved here for best life. I don’t think it’s fair they get deported for nothing. I hope it changes mind of those who deport and I hope Trump also changes mind.”