On Jan. 30, clusters of students congregated under sunny skies in San Mateo’s Central Park, faces set with determination as they chanted: “No ICE in our streets!” and “No ICE, no KKK, no fascist USA!” Hand-drawn posters bobbed in the crowd—“Melt ICE,” “Stop Separating Families,” and “Abolish ICE, Uphold Human Rights.”
The scene was unmistakable: one stop in a student-driven movement unfolding across cities and campuses across the country.
The protest in San Mateo was part of a broader wave of walkouts and demonstrations coordinated as part of a national “ICE Out” day of action. Across the Bay Area, thousands of students from San Francisco to San Jose walked out of school in protest of federal immigration enforcement and joined rallies calling for accountability and policy change.
Students took turns with megaphones, leading chants in tight call-and-response rhythms that echoed across the park. “The wrong ice is melting!” and “The people united will never be divided!” rang out, lifting the crowd’s energy.
For Max K. ’26, the scale and visibility of the walkouts mattered.
“It forces the news cycle to keep its focus on this issue and puts pressure on the government to start making substantial changes,” Kaufman said. “There’s also a morale boost in going out and doing something against a presidency that feels unstoppable.”
To Xochi S. ’29, the moment signaled a rare surge of youth civic action—especially significant in a political moment often marked by the disengagement of youth.
“We’re the next generation that has to deal with this. Even if adults don’t always realize it, it affects us and will affect our future,” Santillan said.
Jane J. ‘29 emphasized the importance of such collective action. “It’s good to stand with people our age,” she said. “Showing our voices and standing together—this is one of the few things we can do, and it really makes a difference.”
What unfolded in Central Park was not just a protest, but an assertion of voice—a declaration that political participation does not begin at voting age, and that this generation intends to be counted.
