At least five students at a Pennsylvania high school were arrested Friday afternoon for their roles in an anti-United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) walkout — a protest their school had canceled only hours earlier.
The Quakertown Community School District announced Friday afternoon that 35 students left school without permission at roughly 11:30 a.m. Local law enforcement was soon notified that students were engaging in “unsafe and disruptive behavior.” As the district began coordinating with law enforcement, both the high school and Quakertown Elementary were placed in lockdown.
Less than two hours later, the district lifted the lockdown and told parents it had requested a police presence at dismissal.
“The district believes strong communication with students, families, and staff is important in navigating challenging situations,” acting superintendent Dr. Lisa Hoffman wrote.
Student Led Anti-Ice Protest Turns Violent in Quakertown, Bucks County
5 juvenile students were reportedly arrested this morning in Quakertown after approximately 30 high school students staged a “walk-out” to protest ICE.
A video posted to Facebook shows several students… pic.twitter.com/01lfGIQV3U
— PhillyCrimeUpdate (@PhillyCrimeUpd) February 20, 2026
Quakertown police said as many as 50 students were involved in the protest. An exact number of arrests had not been announced as of publication.
Some of the students are accused of throwing snowballs, kicking cars, and damaging property. As of publication, police had confirmed the arrests of up to six minors and one adult. Because the protest was student-led, it is unclear if the adult arrested was a 19-year-old student charged as an adult.
Several disturbing videos have already emerged online, including one featuring a man putting a teenage girl in a chokehold. A male student immediately intervened and attacked the man to free the female. Police then took the male student into custody.
“The situation completely escalated,” an observer, who requested to remain anonymous, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “There were multiple grown men getting in the faces of the children, spit flying out of their mouths.”
As of publication, it was unclear whether any students were treated for injuries. Multiple images on social media show blood and signs on the ground.
BREAKING: 5 teens arrested in PA after clashing with police at an ICE protest.
According to reports, approximately 35 students walked out of Quakertown Community High School for the protest.
Despite repeated warnings from police to remain peaceful, students began throwing… pic.twitter.com/akOq2FoYSQ
— Addison Smith (@AddisonSmithTV) February 20, 2026
Shortly before 7 a.m., Jason Magditch, the 10th-grade House principal at QCHS, announced that the initial student-led walkout had been canceled. Principal Mattias van ’t Hoenderdaal announced the protest on Tuesday and revealed the administration was collaborating with student leaders, specifically to “establish clear boundaries.”
Neither Magditch nor van ’t Hoenderdaal had issued a public statement as of publication. Magditch did not respond to an Inquisitr News request for comment Friday morning before students reversed course and walked out.
Social media users loudly lambasted van ’t Hoenderdaal and the administration for working with students on protest guidelines. Although van ’t Hoenderdaal said district policy mandates that students could not make up missed work, he also wrote that students who stayed within designated safety zones would not be disciplined for skipping class.
As a result, it is not unrealistic to expect that students who protested on Friday and were not arrested could still face significant disciplinary action.
