Santa Maria High School students walked out of class during the pouring rain in a stance against sexual assault Thursday afternoon.

Roughly 40 students stood outside of the campus holding signs toward the street.

Student walkout organizers, sophomore Fatima Martinez and senior Andrew Cortez, claimed the school administrators have ignored victims of sexual assault. Martinez said multiple people had made allegations against one particular student, and that the student was transferred to another school. 

Cortez also alleged that the school administration made the victim and the accused student sign a no-contact letter.

“Instead of taking accountability, they just wanted to kick out the student and put them into another school because they weren’t taking any accountability,” Martinez said.

Cortez alleged that a female student had taken advantage of people under the influence, and Martinez said that student had allegedly sent threats to other students.

In response to the walkout, Santa Maria Joint Union High School District public information officer Kenny Klein said the school takes “every action of sexual assault seriously,” and that the district reports to and works with law enforcement when necessary.

“When students decide to leave campus in protests/walkouts, our responsibility is to maintain a safe campus for students remaining at school,” Klein said.

He did not provide any additional information about the alleged assault incident or school response, including student discipline.

A Santa Maria Police Department representative said Friday that they were not aware of related reports to law enforcement and had no indication that anything had been reported to their agency.

Martinez said she felt good about the walkout’s turnout, but she is planning a second one to have a higher attendance without rain. Cortez appreciated the students who came out and showed support.

“I’m really glad that there are a decent amount of students that stayed,” Cortez said, “and this protest, there’s a lot of progress in it, and it’s really helping.”

Cortez also spoke about the importance of students being free to speak out against school administrators. 

“A lot of students here are afraid to speak out because [the] school [has] really big authority figures, and so they’re really stern, and sometimes it might make us afraid,” Cortez said. “We’re doing this protest to show that it’s OK to speak up and it’s OK to advocate for yourself, even if others try to keep you from doing so.”

Representatives from the North County Rape Crisis & Child Protection Center came out to support the walkout. Executive Director Nidia Delgadillo said the organization supports students who speak out when they believe something isn’t right and noted the organization’s confidential 24-hour crisis line for anyone looking for support.

“If you are a survivor of any type of sexual assault, remember that you have a voice. Remember that you have rights, and it was never, ever your fault,” Delgadillo said. “You did nothing to deserve what happened.”

To reach the center, call 805.736.7273.