Santa Catalina students rally for kidnapped Nigerian girls

We’ve seen people around the world, coming together with one voice saying “bring back our girls” in reference to the students kidnapped in Nigeria.

Wednesday, that plea was echoed right here on the Central Coast as Santa Catalina School students rallied in Monterey.

The rally was put together in just a matter of days. Students at the all girls school said they feel especially connected since the Nigerian girls were the same age as they are working hard for a good education.

Holding signs with names like Tabitha, Saloni, and Ruth, students at Santa Catalina lined up side by side.

The names are all different but together, they paint a picture of what 230 girls looks like. That’s the number of girls kidnapped in Nigeria last month.

“It nearly equals our entire upper school student body,” said Tony Adeymi, a senior.

For students, it was a day to truly put the #bringbackourgirls campaign into action.

“The hashtag is all we have right now, we can’t go over there and do anything but we have the hashtag, we are able to educate people,” said Adeymi.

The three student leaders behind the event were just elected into office and thought this was the right rally to end the year with.

“We have so many things in common with the girls,” said Krysia Ng, student body president.

Ng says not only are the girls the same age but they were going through the same scholastic stresses.

“I think a lot of girls can identify with that feeling of fear. That is something can happen to you out of nowhere, unexpectedely, when you’re just trying to study for your finals,” said Ng.

Adeymi is from Nigeria and helped put together a prayer that included Nigerian words.

“As a student, who’s a girl, as a Nigerian girl, as a feminist, these all have impacted the way I think and how present sexism is around the world,” said Adeymi.

Students held signs and chanted “bring back our girls!” to give every Nigerian girl in fear, support and hope

“Have all the girls stand in solidarity and fight for the girls to be rescued,” said Ng.

The Santa Catalina girls will also all wear red during finals week, the color used for the campaign.