Peter Ruehlman, a junior at Dos Pueblos High School, skipped his history class on Tuesday to make his own history by participating in the national Free America Walkout.
Dozens of Dos Pueblos students walked out of class at 2 p.m. Tuesday to protest the Trump administration and recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions.
The walk began at the high school and ended at Girsh Park in Goleta.
School administration and three Goleta Police Department officers marched with the group to ensure the safety of the students.
The students walked out alongside the national movement, which called on people to walk out of their jobs, schools and commerce as a way to stand up to the Trump administration.
Ruehlman said he decided to join the march in solidarity with his family.
“My whole family on my mom’s side is Mexican, and I don’t think it’s fair that people get to have this moral high horse just for having their parents or grandparents immigrated here and taking out the Native Americans,” he said.
Dos Pueblos High School’s Ethnic Studies Now club led the group alongside local activist groups such as ICE Out of Goleta, SB Resiste, 805UndocuFund and Unión del Barrio.
The group chanted “Immigrants are welcome here” and “Out of your house, into the streets” while holding signs, some reading, “Hate doesn’t make us great” and “History is screaming, are you listening?”
The walkout garnered attention from drivers, many honking in solidarity or cheering out of their windows near the Storke Road and Hollister Avenue intersection.
The march concluded at Girsh Park on Phelps Road, where the group then heard speeches from activists and students.
“You should all be very proud of yourselves,” Diego Avila with Unión del Barrio told the group.
He recounted his time at Dos Pueblos High School, where he walked out in 2016 — when President Donald Trump was first elected.
“I want you all to know that you are just one part of the over 30-year history of Dos Pueblos having student activism,” he said.
Ethnic Studies Now club leadership also took to the megaphone to thank students for joining them while denouncing the Trump administration, condemning the rise in deportations and the killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis.
“You all being here and putting yourselves in danger and standing for the cost shows that the spirit is still alive in the people,” said Insharah Zeb, club president and senior.
The club leaders encouraged their peers to get involved, whether that be joining club meetings on campus or joining activist groups in Goleta.
“We hope this tradition stays long after we are gone,” said Madelynn Le, club vice president and senior.