Alhambra Students Walkout, Fri, Feb. 27, 2026 (Photo – Staff)
Under a blazing sun at Main Street and Garfield Avenue, students from the Alhambra Unified School District stepped out of their classrooms in solidarity, unity, compassion, and fierce love for their families and neighbors.
By Misch Anderson\Takemoto
Students from Alhambra High School, Mark Keppel High School, and San Gabriel High School coordinated the walkout, joined by younger students from Baldwin Elementary School. What might have been an ordinary school day instead became a powerful display of solidarity, as teenagers stood shoulder to shoulder, determined to be “the voice for those who can’t speak,” despite the scorching 90-plus degree heat. “The heat doesn’t bother me compared to what we’re protesting,” one student said.
“I’m protesting for all the immigrant families who can’t come out and express their emotions and make their voices heard,” said Byron of San Gabriel High School. “Coming from an immigrant family myself, I want to protect everybody I can, use my voice for the greater good. Just try to make everything safe for everybody. I don’t want to see anybody’s families taken anymore. I don’t want to see children or women being taken.”
Xavier from Mark Keppel High School said the students were speaking for those who feel silenced. “There are people out there who can’t speak in public, but all of us here are speaking for people who can’t speak right now. We think it’s not right that people are taken away from their families, sometimes kids five or six years old taken away from their moms and dads.”
Freshman Lisa said she came to show support for “my family, my community members, my friends who have all been directly affected.” Two young women from Alhambra High, attending their first and second protests, respectively, said it “doesn’t take that much effort to come here and support our people.” One added, “We are nothing without America’s immigrants. That’s what America is made of.”
Emma, also from Alhambra High, said she came “to get ICE out of here and to speak up for friends who are afraid to do so themselves.” Like many of her peers, she learns about current events through social media, news articles, and conversations with family.
For others, the issue is deeply personal and a first-hand experience.
Ramon, a junior at Alhambra High, shared that his father had been detained while driving to work: pulled from his car without a warrant, he was held for two days in a cold cell. “They [the ICE agents] had nothing,” Ramon said. “They didn’t even have his name. They just saw how he looked and took him.”
The experience left Ramon shaken. “It was a terrible day for me because I didn’t know if I would see him again,” he said. “I’m very thankful that my dad is still here.”
Rather than retreat into fear, Ramon chose action. He has been speaking out about social justice issues and plans to attend a two-year community college before transferring to a university to continue his studies. Those who heard him speak saw a young leader in the making — thoughtful, driven, and determined to build something better.
Another student shared that a close friend was permanently blinded in one eye after being struck by a rubber bullet during a previous demonstration. “It angers me how neglectful this administration is,” the student said, explaining that the experience pushed them to become more informed about immigration policy and more involved in advocating for change.
When asked for their thoughts on immigration policy and enforcement, several students said they support the U.S. having immigration laws and enforcement mechanisms to uphold them. “It’s the unfairness and how they’re enforcing them, totally illegally and brutally, that I’m against,” one student said.
Asked about his “ABOLISH ICE” sign, another student explained, “I do think we need enforcement, but Trump and Kristi Noem and all those guys have gone too far. There’s been too much harm, and it’s beyond reform. We need to get rid of ICE, remove the bad actors, and start over.”
Throughout the afternoon, a common thread ran through every conversation: a belief that families belong together, that children should not live in fear, and that young people have both the right and the responsibility to speak out.
Despite the intensity of the protest, the mood remained grounded in care. Parents and community leaders set up tents to shield students from the heat and handed out pizza, sandwiches, and water. A spirit of community solidarity — and occasional hilarity, as a couple of students took a dunk in the fountain — pervaded the scene, with neighbors looking after one another while giving students space to demand change. Parents checked in on teenagers from other schools. Strangers offered shade and encouragement. What unfolded was not just a protest, but a portrait of a generation unwilling to stay silent when their loved ones feel vulnerable.
Alhambra Vice Mayor Adelle Andrade-Stadler attended in support of the students. “We’re here in solidarity with the students of Alhambra Unified, who are fighting for democracy and for their voices,” she said.
As the crowd slowly dispersed, one thing was clear: these students are discovering their power — not just to chant, but to organize, to support one another, and to imagine a future they believe is more just and humane.
In the words repeated again and again that day: they are here so that no one has to stand alone.
All four corners of Main and Garfield were filled with students (Photo – Staff)
“Love Thy Neighbor” (Photo – Staff)
ICE out of SGV (Photo – Staff)
Justice Lives in Alhambra (Photo – Staff)
Holding a sign while resting in the shades (Photo – Staff)
Break ICE Not Families (Photo – Staff)
Alhambra Student Walkout, Feb. 27, 2026 (Photo – Staff)
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