Students from four Jersey City high schools joined together at City Hall today as part of a walkout in protest of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions.
By Dan Israel/Hudson County View
Beginning at their respective schools, students from Ferris High School, Snyder High School, Dickinson High School, and County Prep High School met along the way during their march to Jersey City City Hall.
As they walked the streets of Downtown Jersey City, cars stopped to honk in support. Chants of “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! ICE has got to go!,” or “No hate! No fear! Immigrants are welcome here!,” among others rang out across the neighborhoods.
A student organizer from Ferris described how the walkout was largely organized by sophomores who conducted behind-the-scenes planning, designed the flyer, researched information, and created maps, among other things.
Many did not want credit for safety reasons.
“ICE cannot get us if we come together as one. We must all come together to get ICE out of Jersey City. They shouldn’t be in our nation, not in our state, never in our city. Abolish ICE once and for all,” she said.
On the steps of City Hall, students and elected officials rallied against ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) raids in Jersey City and Hudson County in recent months.
A child of immigrants, another student described how it was necessary to continue to speak up and support each other through these trying times with ICE. She said by standing up for what is right now, others can be inspired to do the same.
“Your story is not defined by fear. It’s defined by strength. This mean believing families deserve dignity. It means believing no child should feel like loving their parents is a risk. You belong here. I belong here. We belong here together. Your dreams matter. Your voice matters. The experiences you carry, your culture, your language, your family history, those are not weaknesses. They are your superpowers.”
Another student, who identified herself as a senior at Ferris High School and proud Puerto Rican, said praised the walkout as strength in the face of the fear provoked by ICE.
She along with other students who spoke would go on to quote a powerful message that appeared during musician Bad Bunny’s recent Super Bowl Halftime Show, that “the only thing more powerful than hate is love.”
“We’re walking out to show that we remember something important. Our community is stronger when we protect each other and use our voices. We’re students, but our voices matter. We see what’s going on, and now it’s our turn to speak up.
“I know we were able to protest, but I also know too many people who were imbued with fear of ICE hurting them if they did, too scared to put their families or themselves at risk,” another female student said.
“I do not blame them. I completely understand how it feels to think you are unable to speak out, but please do not give up on advocating for what you believe is right. Do not stop expressing yourself. We are doing this for you, because we know how it feels to have so much to lose. We want you to know that you are important. Your voice matters, even when you can’t say a word.”
8th District congressional candidate Mussab Ali applauded the students for putting together the walkout to demonstrate their First Amendment rights, as well as the adults who helped facilitate the event including grassroots organization Spirit of Liberation, who served as marshals during the march.
“This is a moment in our country that is not normal. It is not normal to be standing in a moment of fear where you don’t know if you will be detained simply for speaking another language that is the reality of our system right now,” he stated.
Ali also said it’s important for students to protest now more than ever because rights are being stripped from Americans every day. He said that lawmakers in Washington, D.C. are trying to make it harder to vote, further dividing families and the nation.
“The reality is, they brought in ICE to pretend like it was going to keep our community safer. But we know the truth. The truth is that all ICE has done is cause chaos. Abolish ICE!” he declared.
Prior to ICE’s formation in 2003, immigration was handled by the U.S. Department of Justice, under which there was due process, Ali said, adding that the majority of people detained by ICE have no criminal record either.
“What we need to do is we need to stand together, we need to have a united voice, and we need to say that we want ICE out of Jersey City,” he concluded.
Prior to the event, he published a statement expressing his support for the walkout, citing the students’ First Amendment rights to protest.
Ali called on school administrators and local officials to respect the students’ constitutional rights and not retaliate against the walkout by punishing students. On the other hand, he also tasked the students with remaining peaceful, lawful, safe, and respectful.
After Ali, four members of the Jersey City City Council gave brief remarks, including Ward B Councilman Joel Brooks, Ward C Councilman Tom Zuppa, Ward D Councilman Jake Ephros, and Ward E Councilwoman Eleana Little.
They praised the students for their courage, stood in solidarity with them, and vowed to continue to stand up against ICE aggression like through the resolution that was unanimously approved (9-0) on Wednesday calling for the abolition of ICE.
“It’s time to stand up. It’s time to break the rules. It’s time to show everybody that we’re not living in normal times. When people are being abducted off the street by paramilitary forces who will not identify themselves, we are not living in normal times,” said Brooks.
“My council colleagues and myself and the administration, we are committed to working to keep our community safe here in Jersey City. ICE has been operating a regime of fear and cruelty. They have been throwing out due process, they have been executing people exercising their first amendment rights. They have become completely lawless and completely unaccountable. That has to change. Abolish ICE,” exclaimed Little.