Fueled by the unexpected victory of Donald Trump in the presidential election, Santa Barbara High School students walked off campus to rally at the Courthouse Sunken Gardens on Wednesday afternoon to show their support for people who will suffer under the new president's policies. The rally was not against Trump, students told The Santa Barbara Independent. With so much hate around already, they said, they didn't want to spread more.
Following a red banner that read "Ethnic Studies Now Coalition," hundreds of students streamed from campus at noon and down Anapamu Street to the courthouse — accompanied by school staff who kept them on the sidewalks and a police escort — in a peaceful demonstration organized by students Sage and Maggie over social media. The accompanying school staff was supportive of the moment. “We understand their desire to express their opinions, a foundational value of our society,” said Superintendent Cary Matsuoka, in response to the multiple student demonstrations being held across the district.
As the students funneled into the Sunken Gardens, a group of elementary students sat on the steps eating lunch, watching at first and then spontaneously chanting “Hillary! Hillary! Hillary!”
