Ferndale Police Department officers worked to de-escalate the situation after a man stopped to yell at protestors. (PNW Daily)
FERNDALE, Wash. — Hundreds of high school and middle school students walked out of classes across Washington state Friday, drawing angry reactions from some passing adults as protests over immigration enforcement and the Trump administration unfolded statewide.
Students gathered in cold wind and steady rain near downtown Ferndale, chanting anti-ICE slogans while traffic passed through the area. Several drivers responded with words of encouragement and honked and waved. A small number of passing adults shouted insults and obscene gestures.
Some chose to exit their vehicles in multiple instances during the livestream.
Tensions escalate near downtown Ferndale
As students stood along the roadway, one adult man exited his vehicle and began yelling at the group.
The man, later identified as Roger Bailey, said he only exited the vehicle after it was struck by an object.
Earlier, a small group of boys had stopped at a nearby Shell gas station and purchased eggs.
When he stopped, more eggs were thrown.
They were also not shy about launching eggs across the bridge at other students for fun in addition to passing vehicles.
“They were throwing eggs at other kids across the street and hit me,” one teenager told PNW Daily.
Bailey insists he did nothing to provoke the eggs being thrown at his vehicle prior to stopping.
Once the police intervened, there were no more eggs thrown.
Police intervene after egg-throwing incident
PNW Daily was livestreaming during the confrontation, capturing eggs flying from multiple angles. One student who threw an egg was spotted by a Ferndale Police Department officer as police worked to de-escalate the situation.
Officers took the young man into custody.
The adult driver pulled his SUV into Kevin’s Car Wash and approached officers as they spoke with the student. A short time later, an officer escorted the student over to the vehicle owner, where the student apologized.
Police then contacted the student’s parents while the car owner rinsed off his vehicle.
Students regroup and continue march
After the incident, students marched away from the bridge toward shopping centers near Interstate 5. Some carried small bullhorns and led chants.
“Get ICE off our streets!” students chanted as they moved together.
Most passing drivers offered support, waving, honking, and shouting words of encouragement.
Heated exchange with passing driver
Another adult stopped to confront the group, this time an older woman who told students they should be in school and said she supported ICE operations and Trump administration immigration policies.
“I’m mad because we have 300,000 people that just walked through our border,” the woman said. “They don’t care about us or our ways of life.”
One student leader asked her, “Do you think ICE officers care about us?”
“Yes, I do,” the woman responded, prompting audible gasps from students.
“Someone get their grannie,” one young girl shouted.
Other students urged calm so they could respond thoughtfully. Several students cited deaths connected to recent ICE activity in Minnesota, the detention of American children, and the use of 5-year-old Liam Ramos in a federal operation that led to his detention alongside his father.
The woman remained unconvinced.
Student leaders redirect the group
A student leader then took the bullhorn and refocused the group.
“Guys, this isn’t why we’re here,” she said. “We’re here for our voices to be heard. This isn’t us. Let’s keep moving.”
Students agreed and continued marching. One student who had purchased snacks and drinks for the group offered the woman a cookie. Another student gave her a hug.
The woman accepted and returned to her car before driving away.
March disperses, then reforms
Students marched toward McDonald’s, where the group partially dispersed as some ordered food. Several students called parents for rides back to school, while others walked.
Another group regrouped after the stop and marched back toward downtown Ferndale.
Protests spread across the region
Similar walkouts occurred in Burlington, Mount Vernon, and communities across the state and country.
Friday’s walkouts coincided with a broader regional response. Dozens of Bellingham-area businesses closed, altered operations, or donated proceeds in solidarity with a nationwide boycott tied to protests in Minnesota and opposition to Trump administration immigration policies.
Several hundred Western Washington University students also gathered on campus.
Student walkouts have increasingly accompanied national protest movements focused on immigration policy, gun violence, racial justice, and climate issues. On Friday, students made clear they intend to be seen, heard, and recorded as part of that history.
Editor’s note: This story was changed at the request of Roger Bailey who wanted to make clear his automobile was struck before he exited the vehicle. PNW Daily was there during the entire confrontation and while Mr. Bailey is unsatisfied with being included in this story, it occured in public and on multiple videos from multiple news outlets including Bellingham Metro News. We will not hide reporting because the person involved is uncomfortable, but made sure his point of view was known. PNW Daily believes the video and this written description of events along with other witness accounts verify its accuracy.
About the Author
Brian Henderson, This is Not True! Even a little! This is slanderous reporting of what happened. Please contact me immediately!
You contacted me and I gave you the text of this story and you thanked me, so what changed after our conversation? I made an editor’s note to again explain your contention that your vehicle was struck first. There is nothing else in this reporting that is not verified by multiple videos of the protest and your incident on the bridge.
A learning opportunity. I hope the civics and government teachers at Ferndale HS discuss the protest and why incidents in Minnesota matter here.
Perhaps a review of the Ohio national guard shooting of anti-war student protestors in 1964 would be relevant. Another time when the federal government was hiding truth in a box (the pentagon papers)