Finn (from the Smoke Signal): What I noticed is that you went out to the little walkout at Washington High School. So my first question is, why did you go to that walkout?
Maira: Of course, yeah. So I think activism can show in a lot of forms. I feel like, especially as students, a lot of us feel like we have to show that silently, but with the nationwide ICE protests on that day, I felt like it was my job as a member of a community, as a member of a ciy, as a member of the living human race, it was my job to stand up for waht I believe in. I feel like I do that best as loud as possible. So, perfect moment for me to go ahead and do what I love.
F: That’s amazing. And this walkout, what was that like? How many students were there? Was it all students? No students? How loud were you guys? What was your role in that walkout?
M: So I actually was one of the fewer people who didn’t know about the walkout till really late in time. It was already pre-planned. The district did know about it. All our teachers knew about it. So how it worked was at 2 [p.m.], there was a mutual agreement amongst the students that we would just up and leave with no conflict. And the teachers did not stop us. They let us all leave. Of course, we were not excused. We were marked as unexcused. But everyone decided to get up at 2 [p.m.], go ahead and leave, and we all walked to the flagpole at our school. I feel like my role, I just really wanted to make the biggest impact I could. And I feel like in that moment, it was to inspire other people to kind of get rowdy. Because at the end of the day, a lot of the protests that take place in Fremont, especially in Walnut and stuff, are always very vocal. We needed the cars to see us, so I took it upon myself to go ahead and start making some signs for people. Nothing too crazy, but just enough to get the message through. I think it helped unite everybody.
F: What a student full of integrity and activism. Wow. All right. You had the walk out. What was your reason for walking out? Was it anything in the news that you’ve seen recently? Or was it like, all the cumulative stuff with Trump’s policies, all the deportations? What was that?
M: Definitely my reason to do the walkout was for a lot of reasons, but I think the biggest one was my empathy for human beings. I think what’s been going on is just more than cruel. I think families are being separated, people are dying, and with this new kind of policy in place with our current administration, rules aren’t being followed. It’s more become– instead of rule of law, we’ve kind of shifted to a law of force. I think that goes extremely against my principles, and I feel like I had to vocalize that. That’s why I decided to go join the walkout.
F: Absofreakinlutely. We’re gonna get into some of these little more sensitive topics about immigration, so you can deny these questions at any time that you want to. So, Fremont. We have a big immigrant population. A lot of our students, they’re first generation, so meaning their parents are immigrants. How have the recent immigration enforcement changes, such as the increased crackdowns, the changes in like, what countries have visas — there are I think 19 countries with their visas just fully banned, with very few exceptions. That’s Afghanistan, and some are restricted, like I think Venezuela might be one of them. How have the recent immigration and enforcement changes impacted you or around your community?
M: I think I can give a great example of this. So I actually work in Newark, kind of like Fremont’s Twin City. Newark is very well known for having a larger population of Latinos and African American people. I work at the Civic Center where everyone from all backgrounds just come and have a great time with their families. And ever since the current raids have taken place, the profiling, we’ve just seen much more less of that. I feel like people are scared for their lives. I have classmates who are scared for their lives. I think it scared us as a community, but somewhat built a stronger foundation for us in terms of community. Every Friday, if you’;re out and about in Fremont, by the Jamba Juice, you’ll see the same people every Friday protesting against ICE. The same elderly people. And it just– the crowd starts to get larger and larger. I feel like people are spreading the news wherever we see sightings of ICE. I feel like even though it’s a really unfortunate time, people are realizing that we need each other. So I think it’s definitely making an impact, and I hope it’s for the better out of a bad situation.
F: What an intellectual response. Have you or someone close to you have had an experience with immigration or deportation or visa suspension/rejection? What was it like?
M: I have a classmate, and she’s from Colombia. She immigrated here, I think, three years ago, and she’s not very good at English. But she never lets that hinder the way she communicates with people. And I love that about her. So we obviously started being friends, and one day, we were sitting in class, and she decided to share a story with me. It really touched me. It was the fact that recently, her and her family had just been so worried, because although she’s been attending school here, her parents are upstanding working citizens, she’s a straight-A student, she’s still in the process of getting a visa. She was still in the process of getting her citizenship. And clearly, that’s grounds for deportation. So, her and her family have been afraid to go out. Her and her family have been afraid to just live the way they can and [they way] they used to. They’re very scared to go back where they fought so hard to get out of to find new opportunities. It really hit me in a really tough spot, because I don’t think anyone should be having worry about that, especially at such a young age.
F: [tells Colombian man’s story] That fear is definitely real.
M: The basis is just so lost. The grounds are lost. This is just– it’s no man’s land at this point.
F: So what do you want the readers or the Bay Area to know or understand about the immigrant community right now? Is there any message that you want to put out there ? Like any way to help them?
M: I feel like nothing I could do could amount to the extensive amount of respect that immigrants deserve, especially in the Bay Area. The Bay Area is a cultural melting pot. The reason the Bay Area is known is for our diversity, for what immigrants bring to the Bay Area. The Bay Area is immigrants. It’s just the epitome of the world in a nutshell in the bay. The world in the bay. I think we all feel really, really, really defensive [about] our immigrants. I tihnk we all really strongly, firmly believe immigrants do belong here, and for those that don’t, I think they would benefit from a second look — take a second step back. See who’s working next to you. See who’s cleaning up your streets. See who’s your CEO. See who’s your educators. I think everyone needs to remember that we all need to love each other. And I think that’s the bottom of it. That’s the bottom line.
F: What an empowering message. With increasing crackdowns — with immigration and such — how are you and your neighbors, your community, looking out for each other? During these times of crisis, we see community support and people come together and protect one another. With the walkout, that was an example where you stepped up, but could you share a moment again where your community stepped up for a cause or a person?
M: I think a lot of that stand up that should still be acknowledged is the silent activism. I think a lot of people in my community have just been letting each other know through word of mouth that we all need to take heed and really just help each other throughout these moments. Just supporting each other in any way is beneficial, wheter it’s helping your neighbor out with groceries, picking up your neighbor’s mail. I think my community has just really, really gotten closer throughout all of this. And I love to see it. I hope that throughout all of it, something good can [come].
F: Okay, I’ll ask like one more question. Can you give an estimate as to how many–
M: Off the record.
F: Okay, let me close this. [mute then back on] Wow I feel so special. So, can you give an estimate as to how many people were there at the Washington walkout?
M: A lot of the people were coming and going because a lot of us were really worried about consequences we’d have to face. A lot of people were scared that their parents would get called, that they were going to face suspension or expulsion. We did have our administrators watching us, but no one stopped us, necessarily, and [they did not join] us either. No staff or faculty joined us, but no staff or faculty stopped us. I think to estimate the amount of people that at least came out, I want to say, close to– I’d estimate 50 to 100. 50 minimum, 100 maximum were coming out. We were all kind of just getting our message out there, getting the honks from the cars. And it was great.
F: How long did you stay out there if it started at two?
M: Our bell rings at 2:50 [p.m.]. A lot of us stayed from 2-2:50 [p.m.], and a lot of us — not me, though — but a lot of them did — after the bell rang — headed down Fremont Boulevard towards the square and started protesting there as well.
F: Wow. What amazing activism.
M: I think American did the same as well, I believe. And Centerville kids came along and started joining us. It was great.
F: Mission could never.
M: Pretty much.
F: Are there any other details that you would like to share about the walkout? What was the experience like? What did you guys do besides just hold up signs and be such upstanding citizens?
M: A lot of us had an unspoken comfort being around each other. I think there’s a lot– there’s a really toxic culture within our generator for things to be cringe or weird, things of that nature. But I think everyone looking around, whether they were a POC or not, knew that we were all here for one reason. We could have used that time to skip, to go get lunch. We all knew what we were there for. I think it’s great. I think peaceful protesting comes with a lot of risks, but I think it’s something that has helped people for millenia. People need to remember that sometimes we’re blinded by the privilege of not realizing that as POCs, we are the minority. We have to not forget that, and we have to always remember to stand by each other.
F: Amazing. Do you have any last messages that you want to share at all? About anything, I guess.
M: Stand up for what you believe in, whether it’s quietly or loudly. Stick to your morals, and just remember the golden rule: treat others the way you want to be treated.
F: We’re going back to the kindergarten basics with that one.
M: Yep, back to the classics.
F: Also, I think I forgot to ask this. You only want to be identified by your first name, correct?
M: Yes.
F: May I ask why?
M: Even as loudly as I would like to advocate for everything, I think it would be smart to be sensitive about information that is shared during times like this, and I think that’s the smartest decision to make at the time.