Last Friday hundreds of students from Alameda High School, Encinal High School, Alameda Science and Technology Institute (ASTI), Island High School, Nea, ACLC and St. Joseph Notre Dame High School walked through the streets of Alameda to express their shared concerns about the future. 

The students were participating in just one of several marches that involved their fellow students in other cities across the Bay Area and the nation. The students spoke of joining together in a single cause: defeating Donald Trump four years from now. Most of the participants in Friday’s march will be eligible to vote in 2020. 

The students delivered a letter to the city that stated “the youth of this country are willing to come together to talk about important things.” The students wrote that the topics of discussion should include environmental justice, racial equality, civic engagement, women’s rights and LGBTQ rights.   

“Everyone belongs here. Every ethnicity, every nationality, every faith, every gender identity, every family, every child, every adult, every political point of view; everyone belongs here,” said City Manager Jill Keimach who joined the students on the City Hall steps. “In Alameda, we celebrate our diverse community and these peaceful gatherings remind us why we love our island.”