Trump win sparks student walkouts and angry protests across California
Protests of Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election took place across California on Wednesday, with students at several Bay Area high schools walking out in the middle of class and a throng of young demonstrators taking to the steps of Los Angeles’ City Hall.
The demonstrations — which mirrored protests from Seattle to Pittsburgh — followed protests in the pre-dawn hours in which crowds openly disavowed the president-elect, with a few resorting to vandalism.
At Berkeley High School, about 1,500 students — half the entire student body — walked out of class after first period began at 8 a.m., Berkeley Unified School District officials said.
Students tweeted “#NotMyPresident” and pledged to unify. Others chanted, “Si, se puede,” Spanish for “Yes, we can,” and waved Mexican flags, according to posts on social media.
“It’s not the first time we’ve had a walkout. We know what to expect, we know what we need to do,” said Berkeley Unified spokesman Charles Burress.
School and district administrators and faculty accompanied the students as they marched from the school through downtown and onto the UC Berkeley campus.
“Our primary concern is to make sure they are safe during the school day,” Burress said.
District officials were not making any plans to discipline students, he said.
In Contra Costa County, El Cerrito police cautioned drivers to look out for high school students in the road.
“Students from high schools in west Contra Costa County are conducting walkouts today in various locations over election results,” the department said in a statement. “We urge drivers to use caution if you happen upon any of these groups.”
Similar demonstrations erupted across the nation.
In Oregon, hundreds of protesters blocked traffic in downtown Portland, some burning flags. Demonstrators in Seattle blocked traffic and ignited a trash bin.
Late Wednesday, anti-Trump demonstrations were underway in Boston, Chicago, New York and Philadelphia. Many carried signs that repeated a popular phrase from Hillary Clinton’s campaign: “Love trumps hate.”
Earlier in the day, after Trump delivered his victory speech in New York, an estimated 2,000 people rallied at UCLA, where two separate demonstrations merged into one, said UCLA police Sgt. Miguel Banuelos. Read more