Ask yourself, are you a part of any movements? Are you willing to take a stand against injustice?
Well, Amityville’s high school students are.
Over 100 students took to the streets (well, the sidewalk) during 5th and 6th period to protest against ICE tactics and raise awareness of immigration issues affecting our students and community. Many students held signs of courage, quotes, and strength, while shouting protest chants like, “Whose future? Our Future!” and “Our voices matter!” Amityville students shared their thoughts and opinions on what society has become under the current Presidential administration.
The organizer of this act of civil disobedience was none other than an 11th grade Amityville honors student who took the opportunity to spread the word and message of unity. She worked behind the scenes to collaborate on a walkout that would mean something for the student body. This 11th grader invited multiple groups of students ranging from AP and non-AP students, to athletes, Latinos, and Haitians to show a unified front in front of the high school.
While many other local high schools staged their own walkouts on Friday, February 27th, this young organizer didn’t want to steal the spotlight from the Black History Month performance, saying “I feel like if we did it on that day, we would be taking away the attention from the Black History Month performance and they deserve that attention like all of us do. Each group deserves their own recognition. And it’s about unity– if we take away the attention from the Black History performance, we’re not spreading the message of unity.” The anonymous 11th grader also learned from the past experience of the previous walkout held by Amityville students stating “I feel like that just showed me that I want to be able to make another one, organize another one, but even better because the first one didn’t really set a good example for our school.”
If you were unable to participate in the first attempt at a walkout, the organizer said she wanted to simply spread awareness or try to have others participate because this would give them a chance to use their voice to speak up for their family and neighbors, while shedding light on the fact that some children no longer have their parents anymore because of the actions of ICE and how scary it is.
Their mission statement is clear: This isn’t just any protest– it is a collective refusal to stay silent. It’s an opportunity for our school and its community to show the world that we do not stand with ICE. Everyone deserves respect, equality, and justice, no matter where you are from. We protest peacefully to raise awareness and demand an immigration system that values humanity, fairness and basic human rights.”
And finally, a message from the organizer of the protest to the entire student body: “We should all work together to spread a message because we are the future. And people should listen to us.”
