Hundreds of students from Los Alamitos High School walked across the city this week to send a message.
In an event students called the “Los Al Walkout,” students from Los Alamitos High School walked off campus at the start of the second period on Feb. 11, and proceeded down Los Al Boulevard toward the Los Al City Hall to protest the ongoing activities of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Meanwhile, Los Al city police were busy securing a route and working with residents and businesses near city hall to ensure the safety of the protesting students.
With drums beating, students chanted “ICE OUT” as the throng walked several blocks down Los Alamitos Boulevard. The march proceeded to Katella Ave. and eventually arrived at the parking lot of Los Alamitos City Hall.
Students carried homemade signs with messages like “Abolish Ice,” “Hate Won’t Make America Great,” “Ice Out,” and some, as you might expect, a bit more irreverent and graphic. Once there, the students gathered in a huge semi-circle in the vacated city hall parking lot and, using megaphones, began telling stories about personal disruption caused by ICE.
“It doesn’t matter who you support, Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, or Independent, everybody should know that ICE is violating human rights,” one student shouted into the megaphone. “It’s just common human decency to know that what ICE is doing is violating every single human right. Get them out,” she screamed as the students cheered.
Some told personal stories of how ICE had disrupted, and in some cases, broken their families. More than one student broke down in tears as they tried to finish their personal stories about various entanglements with ICE. Others expressed concern that the Joint Forces Training Base, a military base in Los Alamitos, has been utilized by ICE in the ongoing effort.
One student, Isaias Alfaro, a freshman, said he attended the rally because his mother had protested in El Salvador, which inspired him to have his voice heard. He said when his father was alive, the government in El Salvador was using similar tactics, he said, when his parents taught him a lesson he wanted to pass on to his fellow students.
“Your voice is the one thing they cannot take away,” he said.
According to 2020 Census data, Orange County, CA, today has a highly diverse population of more than 3 million, characterized by major demographic shifts and a high proportion of foreign-born residents (nearly 30%). The population is comprised of 43.4% White, 34.1% Hispanic/Latino, 22.2% Asian, and 1.7% Black residents.
The students exchanged stories until about 12:30 p.m. and, following a moment of silence “for all of the ICE victims,” they organized along the sidewalk on Katella Ave. in front of City Hall and began their slow march back to the LAHS campus, several blocks away (about one-half mile).
Students cheered wildly as cars and trucks honked in solidarity.
In an email, LAHS Principal Christiana Kraus expressed the students’ right to protest.
“Los Alamitos High School, along with the Los Alamitos Unified School District, respects the rights of students to peacefully express their opinions and beliefs, while remaining focused on ensuring a safe, neutral, and supportive learning environment. If any such activity occurs, clear plans and procedures are in place to prioritize student safety,” she announced in an email.
Marlys Davidson, a member of the Los Alamitos Unified Board of Trustees, accompanied the group and spoke out as a citizen, not in her elected capacity.
“I was just so proud to see the high commitment, courage and confidence expressed by these students,” said Davidson. She lauded the students for their integrity while protesting in a “peaceful and respectful way.”
“We, as adults, could learn from these kids,” she suggested.
Moreover, many parents were supportive of the event; some even followed the mass of students, pulling wagons with water bottles and snacks for the students, like a wagon train of old.
Robert Acosta, Support Services Manager for Los Al Police, said the department had set up an incident command center and monitored the entire event.
“The recent school-originated march, including the anti-ICE demonstration with a scheduled stop at City Hall, was managed through a coordinated, department-wide response,” said Acosta.
This was an all-hands-on-deck operation, with personnel assigned across all levels of the organization — from the Chief of Police through command staff, supervisors, patrol officers, professional staff, and our Volunteer in Policing Services (VIPS) team.
To support the event, he said the department activated and staffed our tertiary Emergency Operations Center (EOC). “This marked the first operational deployment of our off-site mobile EOC, and it functioned as designed, providing redundancy, flexibility, and enhanced coordination capability,” he said.
Key assignments within the EOC included Captain Gallaugher serving as Operations Section Chief, Lorry Hempe overseeing the Logistics Section, an OCFA Captain Cain assigned as Medical Group Supervisor and Nicole Saiz serving as EOC Manager.
“Fortunately, the event remained orderly throughout its duration. No escalation or ramp-up of resources was required. However, contingency plans, staging protocols, and staffing models were in place and ready to be implemented immediately if conditions had changed,” he said.
Acosta said the event validated both the department’s planning and investment in the tertiary Emergency Operations Center. “It demonstrated our ability to support lawful public assembly while maintaining citywide service levels,” noted Acosta.
“The students were peaceful, respectful and well-behaved,” he said. Acosta said there were no incidents and there were many participating parents who were helpful as well.