“ICE Out”: Students Organize Walkouts and Protests All Across King County
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
By Aylenn Collazos
Edited by Marian Mohamed and Gurjot Kang
In 2025 alone, 32 people were shot and killed or physically harassed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) across the U.S., according to The Guardian. And with barely two months into 2026, eight people have died at the hands of ICE. Young people in Seattle, outraged by the attacks on members of their immigrant community, are taking action and organizing student-led protests and walkouts across the city to bring attention to this matter.
On Jan. 20, KOMO News reported ICE sightings near Aki Kurose Middle School, causing the school to go into lockdown mode. Mercer International Middle School, Cleveland STEM High School, Maple Elementary, Dearborn Park International, and Beacon Hill International chose to take precautionary measures, such as placing the schools under a shelter-in-place and informing parents, to ensure the safety of their students from ICE agents reported in the area.
With the rise in ICE sightings, many high school students in the Greater Seattle area recognized the need for significant action and change when it comes to protecting their most vulnerable classmates and families.
On Feb. 2, a majority of high schools in the Highline Public Schools district and a couple in the Renton School District organized student-led walkouts. Some of the schools that participated, include Highline High School, Raisbeck Aviation High School, Mount Rainier High School, Maritime High School, Renton High School, Lindbergh High School, and Cascade Middle School (opting for a joint walkout with Evergreen High School).
Demographics data indicates that about 80.5 percent of students at Highline Public Schools and 80 percent of students in the Renton School District are students of color. According to the Seattle Times, about a third of the student body at Highline High School participated in the walkout, accompanied by some faculty members.
Students from Highline High School walked from their school campus to the Burien City Hall, chanting, “We Want Justice, We Want Peace. Get ICE Off Our Streets.” Some signs included messages like “We are the voice for those who can’t,” “Anne Frank wrote about this in her diaries,” and “Make Orwell Fiction Again.”
Jonathan Martinez, a junior attending Highline High School, shared his experience as part of the walkout.
“It was awesome, so many people participated in the walkout. The line was so long and everyone had a sign. And cars passing by honked and came back to honk again,” Martinez said.
Several students even carried flags from different Latin American countries– waving them from their cars as they followed the walkout towards the Burien City Hall building and then back to campus.
Highline High School junior Jaenny Quiroz shared: “I was promised a future where many of us would get along even if there were a few differences. I really wanted to speak up for people who can't speak up for themselves, especially since my family members sacrificed everything to give me more opportunities, since the United States was known to be the American dream.”
Organizers from Washington Walkouts, a group of students from the Highline Public Schools District, commented about their experience taking initiative as youth. In an email to GZR News, the organization stated: “Our approach was simple. We saw the fact that America is in distress due to our administration and ICE in our cities. We knew that for our voices to be heard, we had to do something big. We think the walkouts were great. We had an amazing turnout– way more people than we expected. We had members from different communities in Washington joining us, and it was exactly what we needed from this group of supporters.”
The organization further emphasized their hope to deliver a message that is clear enough to invoke Washington state legislators to take more immediate action and tangible steps to protect vulnerable local communities from ICE.
Not long after the day of walkouts organized by South King County students, another group of students from Seattle Public Schools announced a youth-organized protest on Instagram through the account “ICE out of Seattle schools.” The Feb. 5 protest included thousands of students from over 15 participating schools all over Seattle. Some of the public and private schools in the protest included Franklin High School, Garfield High School, Lakeside, Seattle Academy, Nathan Hale, The Bush School, Rainier Beach High School, UPrep, and more.
During the Feb. 5 protest, a student from Franklin High School recalled how one of their classmates was detained by ICE agents in an incident prior on Feb. 4. Franklin High School’s website shows that about 75 percent of students identify as people of color, a significantly higher percentage than the district’s average. With ICE specifically targeting immigrant communities of color, this protest rings close to home for many students.
Seattle students carried flags and signs as they chanted and walked out of classes down to Seattle City Hall. Once at City Hall, students gathered for speeches and a dance circle celebrating community and culture. With one student activist in the protest notably citing in their speech, “No one is free until we are all free.”
Yaretzi Villa Aguilar, a sophomore at The Bush School and one of the chant leaders at the protest, expressed pride at the significant youth turnout and seeing her generation show up for one another.
“I hope that everyone can see how we, as students, came together not only to call out the hurtful attacks from ICE, Trump and his administration on our community– our people, friends and family– but to also speak up for those who have been silenced,” Aguilar said. “They want us divided to stay in control, but this day is proof that there's power in numbers.”
Many students who participated in the protest reflected on how the event was a positive experience and opportunity to celebrate and support the diversity in their communities.
Aziel Lopez Vilchez, who attends Lakeside High School, said he was amazed at the turnout of the rally at Seattle City Hall.
“This brings me great hope to see the change we can all do and how students are willing to take charge in order to secure a future where justice, inclusion and human rights are put at the forefront,” Lopez Vilchez said. “ I am confident that this city will be in good hands, but there is still some work to be done. I hope that people will understand the impact of unity as it is our greatest tool for fighting tyrannous and incompetent leaders trying to push racist agendas.”
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