A C-TCP member reports on St. Petersburg High School walkout against ICE
On the morning of February 5, the students of St. Petersburg High School (SPHS) set an example for students across the city, the Tampa Bay area, and the state as a whole. In the face of draconian push-back from the school administration, police intimidation, and reactionary agitators, the students did not stand idly by while their friends, family, teachers and classmates are brutalized and kidnapped by masked state thugs targeting them for their national origin, ethnicity, or political views.
Remarkably, this protest was not spurred on by some national organization providing material and money. This was an action coordinated, organized, and led by a group of SPHS students. Thus, the character of the protest was a pure expression of the youth’s rage and indignation, clamoring for action and direction.
From the instant the walkout was planned, the school administration begged the coordinating body of students to postpone the action to lunch. While being a more manageable time for administration, it also effectively forces students to choose between protesting and eating. The organizers refused to agree to such a concession, and despite the administration’s best efforts to confuse and disrupt the planning process, the action went forward as planned.
The student government issued a statement the morning of the walkout. Reminding the students that they mediate the student body and administration, they attempted to reassure the students that they don’t want to impede on the students’ right to protest. However they ultimately capitulated to the administration; they claimed the protest was pointless because of their refusal to collaborate with admins, and that they had a responsibility to “keep all students safe.” Once again, the students were unfazed, directing themselves to ignore the capitulationists.
The most nefarious obstacle that the students faced, however, came as soon as the walkout actually began. Police put up flyers warning retaliation for leaving campus, faculty physically blocked entranceways, and two students even said that they were shoved and grabbed by faculty while trying to leave. Many more students supporting the walkout were discouraged by these obstacles, and many of them, out of fear of repercussions from the school or their parents, could not participate and watched from the windows. We understand their concerns, and encourage them to continue seeking ways to participate in any way they can.
However, that doesn’t mean the walkout was defeated. Quite the contrary; dozens of students, several of them making and bringing their own signs, did whatever they could to bypass the school’s illegal and immoral attack on their rights to free expression, ranging from leaving much earlier to avoid faculty, to jumping fences, to quite literally forcing their way straight through the physical barriers to exit.
The fact that the students organized this on their own accord is important, but it’s unfortunate that there is no direction for expressions of outrage from the local organizations. In the days leading up to the walkout, the Pinellas chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) had talked a big deal about how they were standing behind the SPHS students, and the students were expecting that the DSA would have their safety marshals in attendance, ensuring no conflicts occurred with police or agitators. No marshals ever came, which paved the way for two student agitators, one of them wearing an “All Aboard the Trump Train” flag like a cape, to engage with protesters, raise tensions, and attempt to make a mockery of their valorous efforts, culminating in a brave student snatching the flag, and the agitators bringing five cops over to detain the student.
These organic expressions of outrage can sometimes be a flash in the pan without proper guidance. What concrete demands do the students have, and how can they attain them through actions like these? How can they connect with other like-minded students to keep this momentum going safely and effectively? No actions are perfect, but we commend the initiative and bravery of these students for demonstrating their right to protest injustice and express their values.