Protests have erupted throughout San Diego since the inauguration of President Donald Trump, in response to several of the new leader’s executive decisions, and many UC High students and staff have participated.
According to the San Diego Union Tribune, the issues in question range from women’s rights to the recent executive order regarding travel bans, and thousands of San Diegans have gathered repeatedly to make their voices heard (sandiegouniontribune.com).
The first local protest occurred in downtown San Diego, the day after the inauguration, and protesters were responding primarily to the issues of women’s rights and birth control. Local authorities estimated that 40,000 men and women attended (sandiegouniontribune.com).
A reporter for the San Diego Union Tribune recounted, “Thousands of people participated in the San Diego Women’s March, January 21, 2017. The march started at Civic Center Plaza next to San Diego City Hall and ended on the steps of the San Diego County Administration Center about a mile away” (sandiegouniontribune.com).
Junior Elena Andree, who attended the protest, explained, “The main reason [she attended] is because Trump is trying to diminish abortion rights and birth control, specifically regarding Planned Parenthood, and due to the fact that he was elected despite his history of misogyny and sexual assault cases. We are also not sure how his presidency can further affect how women are allowed to live their lives.”
Junior Eddie Roa disagreed: “The only aspect of women’s rights that will be encroached upon are abortion and birth control. Outside of thos,e I doubt anything will change that much.”
Despite the high attendance in San Diego and across the country, the Trump administration does not seem to be waivering. According to US News and World Report, Trump has already issued an “…executive order barring foreign aid or federal funding for international nongovernmental organizations that promote or provide abortions” (usnews.com).
In addition to protests regarding women’s rights, protests regarding policies towards immigration and travel have also occurred. One local protest occurred at the San Diego International Airport the night Trump signed an executive order delaying travel from predominantly Muslim countries, including Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia, for three months and barring refugees from entering the United States for 120 days. This order affected green-card holders and those with valid visas as well. Many travelers were detained at airports or sent back to the country from which they departed (usnews.com).
Senior Abdullah Haki attended the San Diego Airport protest. “I am a Muslim refugee, and I attended because I think that everyone should be able to enjoy the rights that I do,” said Haki.
Junior Evan Satre stated, “The order is a badly implemented waste of resources, because we already have a rigorous vetting process for immigrants. I also think he banned the wrong countries because most terrorists have originated in countries that were not listed on the order.”
The San Diego March in Solidarity With Immigrants was held on February 18, according to the Activist San Diego website. It started at Pacific Coast Highway and was in solidarity with the Los Angeles March held the same day (activistsandiego.org).
The New York Times website reported that the current immigrant vetting process is indeed rigorous, with a total of 20 steps and “…involves many layers of security checks before entry into the country, and Syrians were subject to an additional layer of checks. Sometimes, the process,.. takes up to two years” (nytimes.com).
While the Women’s March did not appear to have any effect on the Trump administration’s decisions, the airport rallies did yield fruit, with the order being suspended by a federal judge mere hours after its implementation. According to the BBC News website, “Judge James Robart ruled there were legal grounds to challenge the ban. Mr. Trump called the verdict by the Seattle judge ‘ridiculous’ and vowed to restore the ban” (bbc.com).
While this step was applauded by many, it seems that some students don’t believe that the protests will have a great effect on the President’s future decisions. “It’s unlikely that anything will change, but it’s still important that our voices be heard,” said Haki.
However, some still believe that the protests may have some effect. “If there are enough of them, the exposure will force the administration to address them,” claimed Andree.