High school student leading Bakersfield walkouts: ‘We have to stand up for ourselves’

Hector Hernandez, a 17-year-old senior from Mira Monte High School, is leading the walkouts in Bakersfield to protest against President Donald Trump's aggressive immigration policies.

The student shared with CALÓ News that his decision to start the walkouts last month was inspired by watching social media videos with his mother. The videos highlighted the harmful impact of dismantling the Department of Education, along with footage of families being separated by the Border Patrol due to their undocumented status.

“If no one's going to be defending us, no one's going to stand up for us, not no parents, no teachers, no one, then we have to stand up for ourselves,” said Hernandez. “Sometimes you just need that little push. I was already trying to plan out how we were going to do it and then my parents gave me that push.”

Hernandez’s parents have been very supportive of his organizing journey. His mother Gladys Flores said that being a first generation herself and growing up with undocumented parents, it was important for her to reflect on those feelings she once had, like her son has today.

“When this started happening, I reflected back when I was growing up as a teenager. A lot of our parents tell us to stay quiet and don't get in trouble. The less attention you get, the better, not only because of that, also because we're indigenous,” Gladys said.

Hernandez’s mother told CALÓ News that her parents are Mixtecos, and that speaking their native language often made them stand out. People would turn their heads or stare at them when they spoke Mixteco, often telling them to speak "normal" Spanish. She also stated that she has always witnessed this type of discrimination within her community.

When all the walkouts started happening in other counties, Gladys told her son that if he was up to it then to go for it. “I would have wished that we as kids from the ‘80s [and] early ‘90s would have had that type of support from parents because you know, it's unfortunate, but a lot of the times it's always best for us to keep quiet and you know, not get in trouble and not get attention,” she said. “This is not for us to get in trouble or get attention.”

Hernandez also shared how his family and friends will be impacted by Trump's immigration promises of mass deportations. “It's going to affect my family, you know. I have friends that don't have documents. I have friends with documents, but their parents are without [them],” he said. Although Hernandez is not undocumented he stands in solidarity with the undocumented community.

After reaching out to several students from different high schools in Kern County, Hernandez led his first successful walkout. Students from Mira Monte, Del Oro, West High and East High Schools all gathered at the meeting point, Bakersfield City Hall. The walkout led to an all-day protest, bringing together community members, organizers, parents and teachers in solidarity.

“I was scared because I thought people were not going to show up, but you know I was still going to walk out either way because I'm there, too, for a purpose. So it was a nervous thing, but in the end it was very good,” Hernandez said. The walkouts were part of a bigger movement not only was Kern County schools taking part, but so were Los Angeles County and the Bay Area schools. 

Hernandez’s younger brother Isu-ii Hernandez told CALÓ News that he feels very proud of his brother and the other students for standing up for what is happening. “I feel proud of them,” he said. Isu-ii also shared that he feels betrayed by both the teachers and the government, adding that many of his classmates share the same sentiment.

Just last week, Hernandez led his second walkout after connecting with other students to establish a non-profit organization called Organizing For A Better Change. The nonprofit organization was created after Bakersfield was targeted by Border Patrol earlier in the year. 

The agents traveled over 300 miles to launch “Operation Return to Sender,” which was a week-long operation targeting predominantly Latino areas in Kern County. Even though the operation only lasted a week, it brought great fear to the undocumented immigrant community. Just recently it came to light that five residents of Kern County have sued Border Patrol for violating their constitutional rights and federal laws in that same operation.

Hernandez is deeply passionate about advocating for the undocumented, as he witnesses the impact it has on his classmates and their families. He shared with CALÓ News how one of his closest friends is going to be leaving for Mexico soon. 

“She's going to be leaving for Mexico within this week because she said that her mom feels like a prisoner inside her house,” he said. “Just knowing the fact that if she steps out, you never know if immigration is out there waiting for them to walk out, waiting for them to just go to a store or something. They are living in fear”

He also expressed how this situation is going to affect him personally. “It’s going to affect me because that's one less person that I don't get to talk to in school, you know, someone that I have conversations with every day.” he said. “They're going to be leaving because of immigration and all this that's happening. It doesn't affect me as a person legally but it affects me as in my life, you know.”

Not only has Hernandez been actively involved in the walkouts and protesting but he has also been joining school board meetings with his parents and classmates to voice students' concerns on immigration and on the elimination of the Department of Education. The department allocates federal grants for programs like Title I, which supports high-poverty K-12 schools by helping disadvantaged students meet state academic standards. If the department is eliminated, not only K-12 students will be impacted but so will students who are pursuing higher education with the assistance of grants and federal aid.

Hernandez fears that his dream of becoming a civil rights attorney is slipping away. The high school senior confided that attending college may no longer be an option for him. “ I want to attend college, but the money situation is not looking good and now they're saying that they're removing FAFSA and all these programs that could help me,” he said. “If I can't go to school and all, I'll stick to working with the community.”

Hernandez shared a quote by Benito Juárez to express his recent feelings with everything that is happening to his friends, family and community. “Malditos aquellos que con sus palabras defienden al pueblo y con sus hechos lo traicionan,” which translates to “Damn those who defend the people with their words but betray them with their actions.” 

“I like this quote because it tells a lot about the struggle of the community,” Hernandez said. “We see that politicians go to us and promise us many things to help us and defend us, but the moment they are in power they forget about all of us.”