Many students in various states have decided to go to the streets to join protests against ICE. Adults who heard the news had mixed opinions about the move, with some showing disapproval. Critics argued that kids should remain at school and that it was dangerous for them to leave school grounds. A recent incident in Illinois appeared to reinforce those concerns. Two students were arrested by Aurora, Illinois, police during an anti-ICE school walkout protest. A video uploaded online showed the aftermath, where the two kids were pushed to the ground as police handcuffed them.
The camerawoman sounded distraught seeing what happened to the two students. She shouted that they were sixteen and accused the police of hitting them on the head. Other police officers got between the camera woman and the other students from the two detained teens. The camerawoman continued to shout angrily at the Illinois police. Later, the Aurora, Illinois, Police Department released an official statement regarding the situation.
They claimed that some of the students were disregarding officers’ directions by entering traffic lanes, blocking vehicles, and even walking into oncoming traffic along Lake Street and the surrounding corridors. The Illinois police also claimed that fights broke out within the group, water bottles were thrown at police vehicles, and reckless driving activity emerged near areas where students had gathered.
The Illinois police then said that the two students they apprehended were “contributing to the unsafe conditions.” They also said that while trying to detain them, another student intervened and punched an officer in the head. The wounded officer was later sent to a local hospital to be checked by doctors. The three male students who were from East Aurora High School were charged with improper walking in the roadway, obstructing, and resisting a peace officer. The third student, who allegedly hit an officer, was also charged with aggravated battery to a police officer.
Internet users who saw the video had mixed opinions. Some felt that the police were out of line and that arresting the kids was unnecessary, though, to be fair, many of these reactions were based solely on the uploaded footage. “ACAB. Absolute trash. Reminder to all the cops out there that you can quit today, or blow the whistle on all the violent people you work with.”
Others who read the official statement from the Illinois police sided more with the officers. “They have the right to protest, but do it respectfully. March around the track at school, on the football field, etc. But to rally down a street with a large group blocking traffic, ignoring orders from the police, etc., then you have the troublemakers in every group that escalate the trouble,” one commenter said.
Still, there are those who said that the force used on the Illinois students was excessive and that there was no need to push them to the ground like that. “Is tackling a standard takedown method for subduing children and teens?” one user asked.
