High school students have continued grassroots initiatives to organize walkouts and protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) since their first nationwide protests on January 30. At the same time, school authorities, state and local politicians, and police are trying to intimidate these teenagers and their supporters with threats of investigations, suspensions, and even criminal charges. Student protesters are seeking to make use of legal precedents to defend their right to freedom of speech in face of such threats.

On Friday, February 6, 2026, students at Bellaire High School in Houston, Texas, walked out as part of a coordinated regional effort involving several area schools to protest operations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) amid fears that its agents will be allowed onto school property to detain students and their families. The widespread high-school student walkouts on January 30 are now being followed by new and similar grassroots initiatives at schools around the country. At the same time, Texas governor Greg Abbott and other local authorities and school districts are threatening suspensions and even criminal charges against students and teachers accused of exercising such freedom of speech and assembly.