KC-area students ‘felt the need to be heard,’ walked out of class to protest ICE
Standing in the freezing cold on the snow-covered football field Tuesday morning, dozens of students at Liberty High School chanted “ICE out now” in unison and raised handmade signs bearing pro-immigration messages, bible verses and lines from the Pledge of Allegiance as part of a student-led protest.
At least 100 Liberty High students — organizers estimated closer to 200 — walked out of class Tuesday to protest U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement, hoping to raise their voices in opposition to the federal agency that one student said, “terrorizes neighborhoods, separates families and targets people who pose no threat.”
“If we don’t speak out, then what’s gonna happen,” said Colby Bysfield, a freshman at Liberty who attended the protest.
“It’s just gonna keep getting worse,” added Shea Plummer, a junior.
Students organized the protest in response to the recent killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, both of whom were shot and killed by federal ICE officers in Minneapolis this month.
Liberty students said they were also compelled to speak out after seeing ongoing discussions of an ICE facility potentially coming to the Kansas City area and hearing rumors of ICE agents allegedly going door-to-door in nearby Gladstone.
“We as a people are angry and we felt the need to be heard and to speak out,” said Kellyn Graham, a senior who helped organize the protest alongside fellow senior Orian Middleton.
Students gathered in the southwest corner of the school’s football stadium during the high school’s fourth period Tuesday.
During the hour-long protest, students yelled through megaphones, echoed chants, gave speeches and proudly held up signs bearing “Hate will not make us great,” “Jesus was an immigrant,” “Fight ignorance, not immigrants,” and “Liberty and Justice for All.”
“Tell me what democracy looks like,” one student yelled through the megaphone before the crowd replied in unison: “This is what democracy looks like.”
“It was just so amazing to see that community outreach and see that so many people are feeling the things that we’re feeling,” Graham said.
She said school administration was aware of Tuesday’s walkout.
A spokesperson from Liberty Public Schools told The Star that the school notified families ahead of the event.
The letter to families said that school leadership was “aware of a student-led walkout related to current events” and that instruction would continue without disruptions in the school building. The letter made clear that the walkout was not “school-sponsored, school-endorsed, or school-organized” but said that administration “will continue our commitment to ensuring that all of our students here at Liberty High School feel safe, supported, and connected while at school.”
Student organizers created Instagram pages ahead of the protest. And in the hours following the demonstration, Middleton and Graham said they’ve heard from countless students and parents thanking them for providing a platform to speak out.
While they don’t have any plans to organize a second protest, Middleton said the pair is helping Liberty’s sister school, Liberty North High School, organize their own demonstration next month.
“It’s really gratifying seeing the ripple effect after the fact of the literal protest, and seeing how many people, in retrospect, are impacted,” Middleton said. “I think that this is a really good stepping stone to building a platform to do bigger things.”
This story was originally published January 28, 2026 at 6:25 AM.
