Protestors march through Arcata on Jan. 23

On Jan. 23 at noon, around 150 peaceful protesters gathered around the David Josiah Lawson mural holding Palestinian flags, signs and yelling chants. Protest marshals from different organizations such as Students for Democratic Society, Centro del Pueblo, 50-51, Young Democratic Socialist of America and Humboldt Anti-War Committee were present. The group demanded the abolition of I.C.E., the impeachment of Trump and urged Cal Poly Humboldt to divest from investments they felt were unethical and further contributed to the direct harm of Palestinians and immigrant communities. 

Around 12:40 p.m. organizers gathered protesters, held a land acknowledgement, and honored and demanded justice for David Josiah Lawson, a CPH student murdered in 2017. The group then walked towards the Arcata Plaza. Throughout the protest, several speakers discussed the importance of persevering and taking action. 

Rick Toledo, a student organizer and SDS member, helped organize the walkout.

“No more imperialism abroad, no more attacks on Venezuela, no more kidnapping, sitting heads of states, no more genocide in Palestine,” Toledo said. “We see all these things as interconnected and being funded by our tax dollars and being carried out by our military and our officials. So we don’t want our tax dollars to go to that.” 

Toledo emphasized that for things to change, the community needs to apply immense pressure, which is a key reason he decided to protest. 

“SDS Humboldt, Students for Democratic Society, put forth an ethical investment declaration that we wanted the administration to sign on to at the end of the last semester,” Toledo said. “And when we met with them, they basically tried to say that they had already divested from 33% of unethical investments by their own criteria.” 

Many protesters shared similar sentiments such as Lauren, a student at CPH, who shared the importance of showing up. 

“Over the past months we’ve definitely seen what the power of bystanders can and what they do,” Lauren said. “Especially with the murder that happened in Minneapolis with Renee Good. I think it’s beneficial to come out here and bear witness to what happens.” 

Faculty members from CPH showed up and expressed the importance of supporting student voices. 

Maxwell Schnurer, CPH’s chair of the Communications department expressed their frustration.

“Not doing something is particularly painful right now and finding community and connection points, informing ourselves, learning more, seeing our neighbors, is part of the move that pushes back from isolation and anxiety,” Schnurer said.

Brenda Perez, director of Centro del Pueblo, expressed frustration with I.C.E. Other organizers shared sentiments about U.S. imperialism, the genocide occurring in Palestine and the inhumane existence of I.C.E. 

In three separate occasions three different agitators appeared yelling comments like “ICE, ICE, Baby,” while the other agitators confronted protestors. 

Stella Joy, a protestor and community member shared why showing up as a community is especially important.

“It’s integral to keeping the community alive, to keeping humanity alive,” Joy said. “We’re witnessing the death of so many people around the world, and we’re losing touch with humanity, and together, the best way to heal that, I think, is by being part of your community, being part of organizations that want to bring about change.”