The hallways of Lane in the morning before the bell are usually bustling with music and conversation. But on the morning of Nov. 9, something was different.

Students had their heads down, the hallways were silent and many students were wearing black. But when the 7:55 bell rang, students were off to first period. It was just another day.

It was the day after one of the longest and most divisive elections in recent history, between Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump. The campaign divided the country and the Lane community on issues such as immigration, women’s rights and religious freedom. In the end, Trump won out, leaving many students wondering what was coming next.

“I actually woke up at 4 a.m. and checked my phone and the first thing I saw was a text from my best friend saying ‘I’m so so sorry’ and a text from another asking if I was OK. So I immediately started tearing up and crying because I knew it meant he had won,” said Sabrina Lopez, Div. 751.  “It felt so terrible. It was, to say the least, disappointing but there was also this feeling of ‘I should’ve known.’”

Lopez comes from a “mixed-legal status family” and is one of many students in the Lane community who fear a Trump presidency. During the campaign, Trump promised to deport all of the country’s undocumented immigrants. Additionally, he vowed to build a wall on the Mexican-American border, and chants of “build the wall” became normal at his rallies.

“Being a first generation Mexican-American really affected me in that he said a lot of derogatory things about me and my people,” Lopez said. “He was very blatantly sexist and that was also something that affected the way I viewed him and his followers. His campaign and the people that went to his rallies and supported him just felt very hateful.”

Trump’s win sent a shockwave through the nation. Regardless of whether one supported him or not, his win was an upset to say the least.

“I was super scared. I cried, and my mom cried,” said Lillie Therieau, Div. 750. “It was this terrible feeling.”

Additionally many females at Lane, regardless of ethnicity, felt fear of Trump’s anti-choice rhetoric. Promises of repealing landmark abortion Supreme Court cases like Roe v. Wade were just one factor that weighed heavily on people’s minds.

“I feel like everyone that he targeted, minority groups felt that hatred coming from other people,” Therieau said. “People felt like it was OK to act like that. I felt that on the train, men harassing me.”

Trump’s election sparked a series of protests around the country, and around Chicago, including one at Lane. Therieau and Lopez led a walkout during 8th period on Nov. 14.

Therieau was inspired by joining some of the larger protests that took place downtown, including multiple demonstrations in front of Trump Tower Chicago after the election.

“There were a crazy diverse amount of people. There were pregnant women, old people, babies,” Therieau said. “It was therapeutic to see all these people come out to show that they’re going to support each other and were going to get through this together.”

The walkout at Lane was planned by Lopez and Therieau and then was publicized through Facebook. Therieau and Lopez said the response from the Lane community was for the most part very positive, with a few who “reacted negatively” according to Lopez.

Therieau and Lopez estimated 50-100 people attended the walkout, during which participants congregated on the Lane lawn, gave speeches and chanted.

“We ended with an Assata chant, which is very powerful,” Lopez said.

Even with some Lane students upset with Trump’s victory, others felt differently.

“I was shocked at the election results,” said Liam Varner, Div. 871. “I did support him, but I didn’t think he was going to win, because of the large Hillary presence in the city.”

Varner, who noted illegal immigration as an important issue to him, acknowledged that some of Trump’s rhetoric could be taken in a “bad sense,” but did not think the language of the campaign was ultimately that big of a deal.

“I do feel like it [Lane] is more open to liberal views,” Varner said. “Some of the touchier topics that conservatives have may be looked down upon.”

Varner also wants people to let go of their preconceived notions about Trump and his administration.

“Just realize, he is just beginning his presidency. So, at least give him a chance before you talk down about him,” Varner said.

The administration and faculty have tried to show students support, regardless of student’s political views on the election. The day after the election, the school included this message in their student news email blast: “We just want to remind all of our students that we are all united by being members of our Lane Tech school community.  We want you to know that the administration, teachers, counselors, and all staff support you and are here for you as you process the results.”

Additionally, Lane has pushed efforts to promote inclusivity, including the “#LaneAccepts” campaign, where students created positive messages and put them on Post-It notes around select areas in the school, with the idea that someone could take one if they were having an off day or needed a positive message.

Sophomore Jazmin Guzman, Div. 969, brought the idea to Assistant Principal Ms. Hanly after seeing something similar a teacher had done on Facebook after the election.

“The day after, a lot of my friends were really hurt. I saw a lot of people were really hurt,” Guzman said.  “Lane’s such a big diverse community, I thought it would be a good idea to show that we support everyone, no matter who they are voting for.”

Guzman estimated that the majority of the Lane community contributed a Post-It to the project.

Staff at Lane has additionally taken further steps to show inclusivity to their students. Stickers reading “Education not Deportation” and posters reading “Hate Has No Home Here” have gone up on classroom doors around the school.

“We’ve seen a promotion of letting kids know that this is a safe space for them,” Hanly said.

“We are a safe space, and I think that our staff does a good job of creating those safe spaces,” she said. “As long as all students know that there is at least one adult, and most likely 350 that stand behind them, that should be all they need to know.”

In addition to teachers trying to make Lane more of a safe space, there are student organizations that are attempting this as well.

“Dreamers’ Club, Organization of Womyn, GSA, The Slam Team are all safe spaces to fall back on, and I hope that if anyone ever feels targeted that they come to any of us and we will definitely support them,” Lopez said. “To anyone who feels targeted at Lane, know that you have resources and places to turn to. Don’t ever feel alone in your fight because we are here and we will support you no matter what.”

Hanly echoed this sentiment: “Always voice those concerns. The administration’s offices are always open,” she said. “We don’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable in classes here.”