Approximately 30 students staged a walkout at Dublin Scioto High School on Tuesday morning to protest recent arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during “Operation Buckeye.”
The walkout lasted around 30 minutes. Student protesters held signs and chanted in opposition of ICE's presence in the community, stating it made them feel less safe in their school.
Several parents and community members also attended to show their support to the students. Dublin City School District officials were present as well to monitor the protest. A district spokesperson said the school supports students' rights to peacefully protest.
Thomas Cochran, Dublin Scioto High School’s principal, also sent an email to parents about the protest. According to the email, district and building administrators met with six students who volunteered as leaders to “better understand their concerns.”
In a statement released by the school district on Dec. 22, district leaders acknowledged a traffic stop by ICE the previous Friday at the corner of Emerald Parkway and Hard Road, just over half a mile away from the high school. Students at the protest shared the opinion that federal agents were waiting for people to leave school property in order to detain them.
The district’s statement also claimed it had no prior knowledge of the presence of federal agents.
“No immigration enforcement officials were on Dublin City Schools property, no officials were inside our schools, and at this time, Dublin City Schools is not aware of any students being detained,” the statement read.
A video reportedly taken of the Dec. 19 incident and shared with The Columbus Dispatch showed a woman being detained who has been reported to be the mother of a student at Dublin Scioto High School. The video also reportedly shows a second woman being detained.
Dublin Police were called to the scene by a witness of the traffic stop. Dublin officials said in a statement that two people were detained, but to their knowledge all parties have been released.
A GoFundMe fundraiser identified the first woman as Leonila González. Started by a friend, the fundraiser has generated more than $15,000. The fundraiser does not contain any mention of González’s release.
Butler County Jail records show a woman with the same name and physical characteristics as González currently being held by ICE.
