Forest Grove High School senior Ivan Garcia's trumpet blew "Cielito Lindo," the Mexican national anthem and other songs, as hundreds of students walked out of class Thursday in protest of a banner hung inside the school that read "build a wall."

The sign echoed the controversial plan by Donald Trump, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, to block illegal immigration along the Mexican border.

Two students hung the banner Wednesday on a second-floor bridge near the front entrance of the school known as the commons.

The sign released a groundswell of support for Latino students -- not only at Forest Grove, where students, alumni and parents gathered midmorning to march from the high school to the school district's central office, but throughout Washington County. Hundreds of other students from Beaverton, Tigard, Hillsboro, Aloha, Liberty, Tualatin and Glencoe high schools joined the 1.5-mile march that shut down Forest Grove's Main Street.

The crowd carried a jubilant vibe, with chants that included "si se puede," a Spanish version of "yes, we can." Others yelled "Stand up FG."

Some carried American flags. Others carried Mexican flags. One student carried a flag with American and Mexican emblems.

"There's times where a bunch of us all unite -- where we all come together," Garcia said as he walked along B Street. "It would be nice to walk in school and be able to just be friendly to people and not to be afraid."

The student protest coincides with bursts of passionate, nationwide responses from minority communities and others during this election cycle. Many have felt targeted by stances from Trump and other public figures that often offend immigrant groups, whether from Latin America or the Middle East.

U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, whose congressional district includes Washington County, tweeted support for the protesters. "Glad to see peaceful action against racism and intolerance. #StandUpFG," using the hashtag used for the event.

Police cruisers scrambled to close off city streets so students could safely protest and march.

Student frustration with school district officials was clear. Many said their leaders haven't responded fast enough to address racism in school hallways.

On Main Street, Forest Grove Community School teacher Karen Teis watched the crowd with her first- and second-grade students, who were gardening outside. Teis has a daughter at the high school and knew students were planning to protest.

"It's exciting to see kids stand up," Teis said with tears in her eyes, adding that she planned to tell the little ones about the student march for unity. "It's really important for us to send the message of inclusiveness."

Meanwhile, high school parent Claudia Honesto walked along Main Street and said in Spanish that she was proud to see students speak out. She arrived to Forest Grove five years ago from Guanajuato, Mexico.

"The truth is, I think there is a lot of racism," Honesto said, "and now it's time for them to listen to us, all Hispanics. Don't push us aside."

At the district office, Superintendent Yvonne Curtis spoke to students after they arrived and tried to send a positive message. She said it's important for students, faculty and staff to build relationships and speak up when they witness racist actions.

"We can help people understand what we're doing to one another, and have it be a goal to change our beliefs systems to ones that are focused on unity," Curtis said. "We can do that right now."

Connie Potter, chief of staff for the Forest Grove School District, said the "build a wall" sign prompted a quick response by staff at the school, where about half of the student body is Latino.

The district has a greater percentage of Latino students than any other district in Washington, Multnomah and Clackamas counties, according to Oregon Department of Education data.

Potter said the incident occurred on the heels of Unity Week, when students displayed "unity-type signs." The "build the wall" sign was hung over one of those posters.

She said school staff either saw the banner or were alerted to it.

"It was immediately taken down, within literally a minute or two," she said. The school disciplined the two students responsible, she said, but declined to say how.

One of the two students apologized to the community through a letter shared in a public blog post. According to the letter, the student doesn't believe that a border wall should be constructed and instead intended to do something in protest of restrictions on freedom of speech.

The student later realized the banner had a negative meaning. The student's family asked that they not be identified. The student asked that people not become violent over the incident and explained that he was afraid for his family after students drove by their home yelling Thursday.

Earlier this year, a black teacher at the school was called a racist slur by a student outside of her classroom. The teacher, Meysha Harville, is one of only two black staff members at the high school. Principal Karen O'Neill said the student who uttered the slur was "immediately" disciplined, and the school takes a strong stance against harassment.

Jose Bermejo, a 2014 Forest Grove High School graduate, joined the march because he also felt school administrators haven't done enough to combat racism.

"It (racism) didn't make me want to be involved in school because you feel rejected by the school," Bermejo said, "but then I went to PCC and the multicultural center. I talked to a lot of people there, and you feel more involved. It's more like a family and they want you to succeed."

His message to friends at the high school: It gets better after graduation.

"I say college is way better because you actually feel like you belong," he said. "There's more people like you that have the same goals as you."

-- Tony Hernandez

thernandez@oregonian.com

503-294-5928

@tonyhreports

The Oregonian/OregonLive reporters Noelle Crombie and Laura Frazier contributed to this post.