Bullard High students march to Fresno Fashion Fair mall in latest anti-ICE walkout
Hundreds of Bullard High School students left campus Wednesday and marched three miles to Fresno’s Fashion Fair Mall in the third day of anti-ICE walkouts at Fresno Unified campuses.
About 250 students left Bullard High School, on Palm and Barstow Avenues, during third period and marched along Shaw Avenue before arriving at their final destination of Fashion Fair Mall around 11:30 a.m.
Hundreds more from Edison High School also marched downtown to Fresno City Hall in a separate anti-ICE protest and were joined by Fresno Unified Superintendent Misty Her, according to students and staff. District buses then took students back to campus.
They joined an estimated 1,000 high school students who have participated in walkouts in anti-ICE protests across Fresno since Friday.
Bullard students held signs and chanted “ICE out of America,” “F--- ICE” and “F--- Donald Trump” and received several honks and applauses from cars passing by along Shaw Ave.
Wen Westpy, 16, a Bullard High junior, said students hoped to raise awareness about the escalating violence of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations, which recently resulted in the deaths of two Minnesota residents Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
“They (the public) should care especially if students care,” Westpy said.
“I think it’s an extremely important way to bring recognition to the victims,” said Rebecca Castillo, a junior at Bullard High.
After arriving at Fashion Fair, about a hundred students proceeded to march through the mall, while others turned away at the direction of mall security. Students then walked around the perimeter of the mall.
Fresno Unified staff and security officials were present and accompanied students as they marched across Highway 41 along Shaw Avenue, ensuring they crossed the streets safely. A security official said a bus would arrive at the mall to pick up the protesting students and bring them back to campus.
As students approached the mall entrance, a Fashion Fair security car and Fresno police in motorcycles were also present.
A man who appeared to be a mall official told students the mall was private property and that he would “have everybody arrested.”
“You’re allowed to be outside and protest all you want, we’re happy about that. You cannot disrupt our business,” the mall official said.
A spokesperson for Fashion Fair declined to comment on the protest.
There were no apparent arrests or police involvement.
As students briefly marched through the mall, some shoppers could be seen observing and applauding them in support. At least one business, Kevin Jewelers, put up their metal security gate as students marched past their business.
Fresno Unified School District could not be immediately reached for comment.
In a previous statement to The Bee on Friday afternoon, the first day of anti-ICE walkouts, the district said that it urged students to stay in school and peacefully demonstrate on campus, but acknowledged staff are not able to stop students from leaving campus if they choose to leave. School staffers worked with police at walkouts to keep students out of traffic, according to the district.
Edison High students marched to Fresno City Hall
An estimated 500 to 600 Edison High School students also walked out on Wednesday in a separate anti-ICE protest, according to district officials. Several hundred students walked from the campus on Cesar Chavez Boulevard and Walnut Avenue to Fresno City Hall in downtown Fresno, according to Edison senior Nicholas Andritch.
Andritch said students left campus around 11:30 a.m. accompanied by school administration, the Fresno Unified safety office, and the Fresno Police Department, students followed a formal safety route planned by school officials from the school library, traveling down Tulare Street to City Hall.
In a video Andritch shared with The Bee, Her can be seen walking alongside students. Her confirmed to The Bee that she and staff walked with the group to keep them same but said the march wasn’t a district-sponsored event.
“While we respect their rights to demonstrate, we also have an obligation to make sure they are safe,” Her said.
Third day of Fresno Unified student protests
Wednesday marks the third day of student walkouts across Fresno Unified in protest of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
Last Friday, several hundred students from Fresno High School and Sunnyside High School walked out of their campuses after the lunch break to join the national anti-ICE protest. They marched several miles to the school district’s headquarters in downtown Fresno.
On Monday, students walked out of Hoover High School, located at Barstow Avenue and First Street, about 9:30 a.m. Monday and marched toward Fresno Fashion Fair, according to the Fresno Unified School District. During lunch break, a group of about 50 students at Washington Union High School, south of Fresno, walked out of campus in a separate protest. They walked downtown, according to the Fresno Police.
Fresno Bee Reporter Leqi Zhong contributed to this report.
This story was originally published February 4, 2026 at 2:25 PM.
