South LA High Schools Organize Against Trump, Block Off Streets in Protest
By Marisa Zocco
High school students from all over South Los Angeles participated in a large-scale walkout late Thursday morning to protest against President-elect Donald Trump.
Shortly after 11 a.m., local high school students flooded the University of Southern California, linking arms and creating a wall near the iconic Tommy Trojan statue.
Within an hour, hundreds had gathered at the heart of the University Park campus, and spread along Trousdale Avenue. The group continued to grow as protesters reportedly filed in from Augustus F. Hawkins High School, Santee Education Complex, Jefferson High School and more. The students eventually separated, with some marching north along Hoover Street, shouting “Vamos Latinos,” “Viva la raza,” and “Not my president.”
Other groups caused LAPD to shut down Figueroa Street in both directions beginning at Exposition Boulevard.
A student from Hawkins High said he posted a notice on Instagram calling on students to walk out of school.
“In my opinion he is not the right president for us,” the 16-year-old organizer said. “He does not have the political experience, he abuses women, he calls Mexican aliens. That is not right.”
Another passionate student leading others in a chant said she wasn’t sure how long she would march.
“If we don’t do this we don’t got a voice,” she said. “Let’s go to Alaska, I don’t care, we need a voice.” she said.
By 3:30 p.m. protesters began arriving back at West Adams Preparatory High School, where one student told Annenberg Media that buses had taken students to City Hall to protest. He also said teachers and counselors accompanied the groups to provide guidance as they gathered in solidarity against the man they say is not representative of their nation.
The protest concluded at West Adams high school just minutes before the 3:15 p.m. dismissal. Buses were provided to get students back to where they needed to be.
Just hours earlier, the LAUSD commented that it urged its students to think about their futures.
The protests in South LA were among others across the city. Students in Eagle Rock, South Gate and Boyle Heights also mobilized, according to media reports.
