A good number of Esperanza High School students carried signs depicting their opposition of the policy early this month, reported California Family Council (CFC). Led by junior Lesley Ledesma, they staged a walkout after finding out the school administration is allowing a biological male to use the girls restroom.
Sophia Lorey, outreach coordinator of the CFC, said Ledesma wanted to point out the injustice of the school policy and what California is forcing on girls.
"She led a student walk out at her school, not really sure if there was going to be 10 people that posted beside her or how many. We ended up seeing about 75 students outside the high school holding signs saying ‘Protect Girls’," states Lorey.
Ledesma reported that the female students felt unsafe and that the school said they can go to the in the nurse’s office instead if they are uncomfortable. According to Lorey, Ledesma says her activism is not motivated by hostility but by a concern for fairness and safety. Ledesma is advocating that everyone deserves dignity but not at the cost of someone else’s sense of safety.
Lorey posted on X a video about male student advocating for the girls and for their safety during the protest. On the post, she wrote, “Today in Anaheim, CA HS junior Lesley Ledesma planned a student led walk since there has been a MALE using the girls restroom. The girls stood up. The BOYS stood guard.”
Lorey believes this will not end with this one walkout, but that the energy behind this protest will continue.
"I believe it's going to continue because every time these girls go to school, they're concerned and nervous about a boy in their restroom. I think that, when they see it happen, it fires them up to make a stand again, to keep using their voices, to keep being loud. I think we're going to see this move forward with the girls," says Lorey.
