Hundreds of Carmel students walk out of school to protest Trump, ICE

Hundreds of students at Carmel High School walked out Tuesday afternoon as classes ended to take part in a nationwide protest against the Trump administration.

The students walked more than a mile in freezing temperatures to the city hall. They said they were angry at the actions of the Trump administration, citing raids on immigrant communities, the separation of families and the deployment of National Guard troops and federal immigration agencies in cities throughout the country.

Many students held signs protesting Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.

Jack McNally, a Carmel High School student who organized the action, said this type of public protest is a way to amplify young people’s voices on issues that matter to them.

“If an older generation cannot recognize those truths, then let it be the younger generation that takes a stand, makes the right decisions and shows them,” McNally said at the protest outside Carmel City Hall.

The students’ protest was part of the “Free America” Walkout planned across the country on Jan. 20 to mark one year since President Donald Trump was inaugurated to serve his second term.

It also comes as students across the country protest the Jan. 7 killing of Renee Nicole Good by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis. The Trump administration has called the shooting self-defense, though state and local officials strongly contest that account.

Maaike Alejandra Mora, another student at Carmel High School, is a descendant of formerly undocumented people. 

Maaike Alejandra Mora, another student at Carmel High School, is a descendant of formerly undocumented people.

“We will not go backward,” she said during a speech. “We will not accept or allow fear, corruption and secrecy to go on any longer. We will not be silent.”

Once considered a reliable Republican stronghold, Hamilton County drew national attention on the 2024 election night as a potential suburban bellwether. Trump carried Hamilton County with 52% of the vote to defeat Democratic candidate Kamala Harris. But in Carmel and Fishers, Harris won.

McNally, the student organizer, said it’s time to set aside political labels and stand up, because doing nothing is the greatest danger.

“History has shown us time and time again what we can accomplish when we come together. That is our power, the power to stand up, speak up and sometimes walk out,” McNally said.

“Now is not the time to sit idly by and watch the world burn.”

Organizers said parents could make a request for students to be dismissed right before the end of the school day. Carmel police officers escorted the student protesters along the route.

Farrah Anderson is an investigative health reporter with WFYI and Side Effects Public Media. You can follow her on X at @farrahsoa or by email at fanderson@wfyi.org.