Amid the national protests against the Trump administration that Saturday, an estimated 1,200 people showed up at the intersection of Nordhoff St. and Zelzah Ave. in Northridge to join the cause. But despite its proximity to the CSUN campus, the crowd was significantly short of students.

Starting at 11 a.m., protesters, mainly of older generations, took to the sidewalks and crosswalks to wave flags and hold signs opposing President Donald Trump’s recent actions.

“I did not expect this many people to come out,” said Dayauna Blevins, a student at Los Angeles Mission College. “I came before 12 and I was like ‘wow, they’re all up and down the street.’ I’ve never seen a protest this big in the valley, personally.”

Betty Toto, the lead organizer of the protest with Northridge Indivisible, estimates that roughly 1,200 people showed up to challenge what she views as an attempted dictatorship from Trump. Only a few of them were students, however.

Toto said it’s important for college students to understand their need to fight for their rights and that she was surprised at the low CSUN turnout.

“I specifically chose this location hoping that students would join us,” Toto said. “They really could have represented their university by showing up to this particular ‘No Kings.’”

Hawa Ghaus-Kelley, a CSUN faculty member, agrees that student turnout was disappointing.

“I would have loved to see more students,” Ghaus-Kelley said. “We have like grandmas out here. We have children out here, babies out here…students need to rally. I don’t know why they’re not showing up.”

While younger protesters provided multiple different theories as to why there were not as many CSUN students in attendance, all seemed to share one specific explanation – fear.

Madina Braish, a recent graduate of CSUN, hypothesizes that student work obligations contributed to the low student turnout, but also cited other reasons.

“I think there’s a lot of fear and negative stigma,” Braish said. “Some students might not be safe and I think they’re worried about that.”

Priyanka Philip, a senior studying Animation at CSUN, was surprised to learn that she was one of the few students in attendance and acknowledged that she had only heard about the event through her church, which she attended the protest with.

In addition to listing midterms as a potential reason for low CSUN attendance, Philip addresses the common theory.

“There’s a lot of risk associated with coming to a protest and [students] don’t wanna put their academic careers at risk, perhaps,” she said.

Philip also acknowledged that for those who were able to attend, they are doing a service to the rest of the community.

“I think it’s important to be part of protests to give hope to people who may not be able to…or are too scared to go,” Philip said. “There is a community that supports the same things that they do and is hopeful for change. I think it emboldens people.”

One group at CSUN proudly showed support for the cause.

Members of Ballet Folklorico Aztlan de CSUN were practicing on campus for an upcoming show when they decided to join the protest.

Aracely Pedraza, Brenda De Dios, Carolina Cabrera and Veronica Parrales stood in front of the CSUN statue, waving their colorful vestuarios (skirts) to honor their culture, which they feel is intertwined with the protest.

“I think given the cultural context of the dance, it’s inherently political,” De Dios said. “Because of our background and where we come from, which is very much being targeted right now, it’s political.”

Pedraza adds a similar notion.

“We came to support the protest because we’re all affected by it one way or another,” said Pedraza. “If it’s not directly targeted towards us, it’s targeted to our people or people we care about in our community.”

Parrales says that protesting is a way to show that, despite administrative efforts, they’re still here and they’re still fighting for their place. De Dios added that it brings visibility and she urges people to “fight the fear” and show up for their community.

Many protesters were in agreement that events like this can bring people together and that, despite trying times, it doesn’t have to be grim.

Some attendees boasted unicorn inflatables, with others taking similarly humorous routes through clever sign artwork.

“Street theater makes it fun to come out,” said Clifford Tasner, president of the Southern California Chapter of Americans for Democratic Action. “People bring funny signs, they wear funny costumes and people say ‘wow, this is a festive environment.’”

Tasner takes a humorous route himself through his use of satire. Boasting a “trillionaires for Trump” sign, Tasner aimed to make light of the situation.

“We need satire, we need to laugh, we need humor right now,” Tasner said. “I am here to provide succor for all the people putting their life on the line.”