Hickman High School students walk out Tuesday in protest against ICE

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Sophia Danh attends Hickman High School in Columbia as a freshman, and goes to class alongside her usual classmates. But she said there's a feeling of uncertainty that lingers in her mind from time to time.

Danh said her parents are immigrants, and though most of her family are citizens but it isn't solely her family she has to think about.

"Most of my friends are immigrants and I think that it's extremely wrong for like immigrants to be deported wrongfully without due process, considering America was built on immigration in the first place," Danh said. "I do have like a minor fear that we will be deported without due process."

It was those fears that led Danh to become one of dozens of students to walk out of class on Tuesday afternoon as part of a nationwide protest. Free America urged people to walk-out of work and school at 2 p.m. Tuesday to speak out against the federal immigration crackdown spearheaded by President Donald Trump administration among other actions it considers to be "threats."

A district spokeswoman had told ABC 17 News that as many as 70 students had walked out on Tuesday, though some students gave estimates as high as roughly four times that number.

Federal agents have been sent to several cities around the country, most notably, Minneapolis. 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent in early January, prompting large-scale protests across the country, including in Mid-Missouri. The Department of Homeland Security has claimed the shooting was done in self-defense.

According to Danh, Tuesday's protest at Hickman was orchestrated by the school's student council. Danh and her friend, T'Ana Johnson said the large group of students walked out around 2 p.m. and marched along Providence Road and around campus for about 30 minutes.

The two said the group yelled out anti-ICE cheers and held posters and signs. Johnson said the group also heard speeches from the student council's president before marching.

"I think we really wanted to draw attention to the problem of ICE and what is happening in our country at the moment," Danh said.

Virginia Chiarottino is a junior who did not participate in Tuesday's walk-out, but commented on students feeling the need to protest during school hours. Chiarottino said she could see herself participating in future protests, if they were to occur.

"It's kind of crazy that like our rights are not being protected whatsoever and it's getting to a point where high schoolers have to protest it," Chiarottino said. "It's gone so far now that kids who should be thinking about school are not thinking about school and are busy being worried about ICE instead of focusing on their education."

Danh said her personal connection to the matter made seeing the large group of students who participated in the walk-out that much more fulfilling. She said she hopes in doing so, they were able to send the message that enough is enough and the turn out on Tuesday speaks for itself.

"America is built on unification to peacefully protest and hope for a change but I eventually do hope that we will get a change out of ICE," Danh said.

CPS spokeswoman Michelle Baumstark said depending on if a student had a class during the time of the walkout, they may receive an unexcused absence.