More than 500 LBUSD students walk out in protest of Trump immigration policies
'My parents fought for my future, so I will fight for theirs,' read one student's sign.
Hundreds of students walked out of Long Beach schools Friday afternoon in protest of the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
“This is for our family, this is for our country, this is for our freedom,” said Frankie Lopez, a sophomore at Jordan High School who walked from his campus to Lakewood High and continued on with the larger group as they headed off to Downtown Long Beach on foot.
Long Beach Unified School District officials estimate between 500 to 600 students from Jordan, Poly, Wilson, Lakewood, Millikan and Cabrillo high schools participated in the walkout. Students from Franklin Middle School also participated, a district spokesperson said.
The Long Beach protest was part of a broader regional walkout that saw students in Los Angeles, Pasadena, Anaheim, Compton, La Puente and other cities leave campus Friday.
Students in Long Beach could be seen carrying signs, including many that read “Fuck ICE.” One student’s sign said: “My parents fought for my future, so I will fight for theirs.”
“As a district, we respect and support students’ rights to express themselves through peaceful demonstrations,” a LBUSD spokesperson said in a statement, adding that they would have liked students to “remain on campus, where they can engage in meaningful discussions and learning opportunities in a safe and structured environment.”
The spokesperson noted that student safety is a top priority — one that becomes much more challenging once they leave campus. They urged parents to have conversations with their students about making responsible decisions and staying aware of their surroundings.
“Our schools will continue to provide safe spaces for dialogue and learning, and we encourage students to express their voices in ways that uphold respect, responsibility and community values,” the spokesperson said.
The district has been vocal in its support of immigrant families with students within its system. In January, days before Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 47th president, LBUSD published a webpage announcing that it “stands in solidarity” with its immigrant students and families.
Within his first few days in office, Trump announced his administration would allow immigration agencies to make arrests at schools, churches and hospitals, ending a policy established in 2011.
LBUSD’s website also includes advice and resources for families.
According to ed-data.org, nearly 60% of students were Hispanic or Latino during the 2023-24 school year, which is the most recent data available. Less than 12% of students were white.
Long Beach Unified teachers and others, meanwhile, are set to gather at the Teachers Association of Long Beach headquarters at 4362 Atlantic Ave. Saturday to speak out against the Trump administration's efforts to “dismantle” the Department of Education.
“The educators of Long Beach will never stop advocating for our students and their right to a quality education,” TALB President Gerry Morrison said in a statement Friday.
The organization’s main concerns are potential cuts to special education and mental health support as well as other decisions that could lead to fewer teachers and larger class sizes.
We need your support.
Subcribe to the Watchdog today.
The Long Beach Watchdog is owned by journalists, and paid for by readers like you. If independent, local reporting like the story you just read is important to you, support our work by becoming a subscriber.
