Samo students walkout against Trump administration
On Feb. 5, Samo students along with other schools walked out against President Donald Trump and the policies he introduced to America as the new president.
The walkout was organized by Kayman Mangan (‘25), Ava De La Barreda (’26), Elliot Ho (‘25) and Sara Javerbaum (’25), who had been organizing this walkout for weeks now and put countless hours into making this happen. Meeting once to twice a week at their club to create signs and posters, they also focused on planning the walkout even more thoroughly. By talking to administrators and people of the school board, having meetings with members of the teachers union and communicating to student reps from the Samohi chapter of DSA, they focused on ensuring safety for those who walked out. They also created group chats with student representatives from Culver, Malibu, University, and Venice, to discuss all of their goals and what they wanted to get out there. They also met with the mayor of Santa Monica, Lana Negrete, and gave her a list of demands that included dents, (the protection of our education, protection of students from federal agents, protection of immigrant communities and trans and queer communities, especially students, protection of healthcare access, and the protection of our educational curriculums, those focusing on civics, history, gender, race and sex.)
At the start of Flex, students began the walkout, marching around school, rallying up students then walking out of campus. The students walked down Pico and to Santa Monica City Hall, where the marching stopped and people started giving speeches, holding megaphones, signs and art. While some students walked out, others, such as Anka Jovanovic (’25) said they believed it to be not as effective as it wouldn’t create many changes to the presidency in the long run.
“While President Trump’s policies and executive orders are questionable in their constitutionality, protesting him being president at all goes against the very democracy America prides itself on,” Jovanovic said. “Doing so will only serve to further the divide in our country, turning people against each other for simply holding different political beliefs. We should be striving to advance bipartisanship and finding common ground, not responding emotionally to an election outside of our control.”
However, Javerbaum said the walkout wasn’t to remove Trump from office or get his attention, but to practice self-advocacy, support their community and prove students have the ability to challenge oppression and injustice.
“It’s no joke that our president plans to deport 11 million “illegal immigrants”– people he refers to as criminals and economic leeches but who we know to be tax-paying friends, family, and invaluable members of our communities…To those of you in the crowd or at home who don’t think this walkout is going to do anything, remind yourself that that’s exactly how this new administration, and all fascist governments like it, wants you to feel,” said Javerbaum.
The main issues being protested against were immigration enforcement by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and deportation. Students protested against ICE because ICE’s mission is to focus on American security and public safety, by enforcing immigration laws and detaining immigration. ICE has become significant, especially after Trump’s presidency, as immigrants begin to fear the potential for deportation and being separated from their families if ICE agents catch them.
Another issue that was protested during the walkout was the anti-LGBTQ+ laws, specifically those that were enforced after Trump came into office. On his first day in office, Trump enacted an executive action, which eliminated the idea of a "gender identity" separate from sex in the federal government, recognizing only two genders.
After the organizers said their speeches, students and adults came up onto the stairs, one by one, speaking about their personal beliefs and experiences. One significant moment was when the mayor of Santa Monica came out and talked to the crowd, assuring those who protested that she supported them and would continue fighting for the change they wanted to see. Through her support, the mayor said she is focusing on implementing a student council into the city's government, allowing younger generations to have a say in decisions within the local government and allowing students to sit in on certain meetings and contribute.
As the political decisions continue to shift the nation, students choose to fight for change instead of watching it destroy the future generation as the president continues to withdraw or reshape programs, departments and financial aid. Students who spoke out at the walkout clearly refused to remain silent in the face of injustice, as it came from this growing frustration with the government among many of the students who have seen or themselves been affected by these deportations and discriminatory laws.
“So let this walkout be a symbol of our resolve. We will keep fighting, we will keep marching and we will never stop demanding for a better future,” said De La Barreda.
Social media has played an important role in spreading the word about this protest across many different schools, such as Culver City High, Malibu, (etc…) giving a platform for this walkout in the first place. As a photographer and as someone who did take photos of this walkout/event, it's always amazing being able to capture such raw emotion and power through my lens. From the faces of the speakers to the many signs that were at the protest and just the general crowd of people, you can feel the genuine emotion and feeling through the screen or paper when viewing these photos. Every single one tells a separate story.
“There are few things that scare the billionaires that now run this country, but there is nothing more radical, more terrifying, than unity. Stand with your peers and make your voice heard. We’re listening,” said Javerbaum.