Dozens of students walked out of Evanston Township High School Friday to protest the war in Iran as well as other moves made by President Donald Trump’s administration, including his mass deportation campaign.
Students from the north suburban school carried signs that read “war is costly, peace is priceless” and “Abolish ICE,” a slogan calling for the end of the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
They walked to the school’s football field a few blocks away, where about 150 students gathered in the blue and orange stands. Speakers called for peace in Iran and other areas experiencing conflict, such as Gaza and Ukraine.
It’s the latest in a string of student-led walkouts at high schools nationally and in the Chicago area but Friday’s walkout appears to be one of the few centered on the war in Iran. Students said they’ve discussed the conflict among themselves and in school. Teachers have had to figure out the right way to talk with students about the war.
Students at this school have walked out before. In January, they marched to protest ICE. Some students are planning on participating in Saturday’s “No Kings” protests.
Senior Lillian Roth has listened to a close friend who has family in Iran talk about the uncertainty she feels as the month-long war rages on.
“It’s really heartbreaking to know that there’s nothing she can even do about it, and there was really no reason for the war in the first place,” Lillian said.
Lillian Roth, 17, is worried about the human and financial toll of the war in Iran and was among the Evanston Township High School students who participated in a protest Friday.
Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
Lillian is worried about the financial cost, too. The 17-year-old would rather the U.S. put the billions it has spent on the war with Iran toward other causes, like education, health care or improving infrastructure.
“There’s so many better things to put that money towards than war,” Lillian said. “My friends and I will
