High school students across southern Maine and in Lewiston are planning to walk out of class or skip school altogether to participate in a national general strike Friday over U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions in Maine and elsewhere.
Friday student demonstrations are scheduled in Gorham, Lewiston, Portland and Yarmouth, while some Midcoast students have scheduled a walkout for Monday.
Public school systems in areas targeted by ICE during “Operation Catch of the Day” have seen a significant drop in attendance, school officials have said. More than 1,100 students in the state’s largest district, Portland, were absent Jan. 23, including almost half of the district’s multilingual students. Westbrook, South Portland and Biddeford have also reported attendance drops.
Students in Portland were originally going to walk out of school Friday, but they have pivoted to not attending classes at all. A social media post announcing the change said it was made so students can more easily attend a protest scheduled for Friday afternoon in Monument Square.
“Immigrants across the country have been irreversibly affected, regardless of their legal status,” read an Instagram post announcing the Portland demonstration. “The immigrant community is vital to Portland, and this is a chance for student allies to stand up for their peers.”
More than 500 Portland students joined a walkout in December, when protesters marched to City Hall after two students were detained by immigration enforcement agents.
Lewiston students planned to walk out during an assembly Friday but later learned that the assembly will feature the school’s Unified Basketball team. In order to support the team, a demonstration will instead be held after the assembly, organizers said on social media Thursday morning.
Perola Meli, 16, organized the Lewiston demonstration with three other friends, and 200 students had already expressed interest in protesting as of Thursday, she said.
“People are like, ‘I want to do this, but I’m just scared that I could get detained, that ICE could be there at the protest,’” she said. “So … people want to speak up about this, but they’re just so scared to.”
Despite Sen. Susan Collins’ Thursday announcement the federal government is easing immigration efforts in Maine, students in and around Lewiston’s immigrant community remain skeptical, Perola said.
“People are still a little bit worried,” she said. “That fear’s not totally gone.”
Gorham High School students are also planning to walk out Friday because “we stand with the rest of Maine in response to the increased ICE activity and violence in Maine,” according to a social media post announcing the demonstration.
Yarmouth students’ absences will be excused if a guardian calls the school to inform them their student is participating in the strike, according to a social media post from student organizers.
“Students will participate in the nationwide strike in solidarity with Minneapolis, Maine’s immigrant community, and AGAINST ICE,” a social media post announcing Yarmouth’s participation states.
Students at a number of Midcoast schools are preparing to walk out Monday. Lincoln Academy and Brunswick, Mt. Ararat and Morse high school students will leave school at noon and meet at the Sagadahoc Bridge.
Staff Writers Riley Board, Kendra Caruso and Katie Langley contributed to this story.
