San Jose high school students rally in protest of ICE operations
SAN JOSE, Calif. - Hundreds of San Jose high school students left their classes early and took to the streets to demonstrate against planned Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportations in the Bay Area.
A little more than a week into President Donald Trump's second term in office, and the South Bay is mirroring the mood during his first term.
Much of the angst is driven by deportation raids and arrests.
What they're saying:
"You can just imagine how people feel now that ICE is actually invading our communities. No matter what our status is, we all share the same fear," said Yesenia Marquez, a William C. Overfelt High School sophomore.
Chants such as "Si Se Puede" filled the mild air as sunlight filtered through the sparse trees.
"We believe in empowering students, especially when they make educated arguments, intelligent arguments, and they want to stand up for something they believe in," said William C. Overfelt High School Principal Vito Chiala. "Then, we're going to allow them to do what they need to do."
Local perspective:
The Santa Clara County Rapid Response Network (RRN), a first-alert resource for residents concerned about immigration raids, confirmed to KTVU that ICE agents conducted two enforcement acts Monday and Sunday.
Immigrant rights advocates said they followed the unmarked vehicles, documenting the movements as agents drove through the city.
"What we've seen so far out of ICE are targeted operations. That means they have their list and they're trying to focus on that list," said Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN) Executive Director Huy Tran.
Big picture view:
Some experts believe the presence of federal immigration agents days after President Trump began his second term in office is spreading a wave of fear across the Bay Area and country.
"There's a lot of good reasons to be anxious," said Dr. Thomas Plante, a Santa Clara University psychologist. "People absorb sort of the affect or the mood around them. And so when there's panic and anxiety and tremendous fear, it's very, very easy for people around to absorb that."
Plante said one way to combat rampant fear is for smaller groups to form larger coalitions.
The Overfelt students left their campus late in the afternoon and marched roughly one mile north to the Plaza de San Jose shopping center, where a second rally was taking place.
One participant explained this movement is larger than one ethnicity or culture.
"America in general got us all split up and spread out, but we're all one people. Before all the chaos and the raiding started going on, we were all one," said Yonex Jones.