(The Center Square) – The father of a Federal Way High School student is raising concerns about a recent school assembly related to Hispanic Heritage Month.
“He came home and he was just upset,” Nathan Bindara said about his son, who is a student at FWHS. “He said, ‘Dad, can I be excused from assemblies?’ Then he explained there was a video they were showing that upset him. I asked for clarification, and he told me they were saying you can’t be illegal if you’re native or Mexican, and I was like, wow, that’s ridiculous.”
The video, linked to a Facebook page belonging to Native Cultures Consortiums, opens with a woman saying, “Mexicans are Native Americans.”
“Before there were passports and fences and flags, my people were here,” another woman in the video says.
Bindara explained that he called the district office, shared his concerns, and then spoke with the vice principal at Federal Way High School, who agreed to email him the entire presentation from the assembly, including the video.
“I tried to explain to her that I’m half Mexican and part Apache, and I told her I didn’t understand how you can be telling kids they can’t be illegal. That’s just not true,” he said, suggesting an overt political message should not be part of a school assembly.
Bindara said Vice Principal Amanda McGrew told him she had a different viewpoint on the video, but had met with the Latinx Club at school, which had promoted the video, and shared her concerns.
“It will allow for a great teachable moment for our Latinx Club students on different viewpoints and perspectives and allow them to think about considering and including these perspectives when planning assemblies in the future,” McGrew said in an email to Bindara shared with The Center Square.
“When I watched the video, they were saying you can’t be American unless you’re native or Mexican,” Bindara said. “It felt very divisive, and I just felt angry. And it was all AI-generated. They couldn’t even get real people to do the video and say those things.”
A man in the video says, “When they say go back to your country, I say, where exactly do you want me to go? I’m already home.”
A woman in the video proclaims, “I am what America looks like, before the conquest, before the lie, before the border.”
Bindara said his son has been told to walk out of future assemblies or classes promoting a similar agenda.
“If they start getting political like that, he knows he can get up and leave,” he said.
Meanwhile, a parent in the Highline School District is sounding the alarm about a controversial immigration-related book that is required reading for ninth graders.
“The Book of Unknown Americans” is a novel about the immigrant experience in America, centered on a family from Mexico who move to Delaware.
The book contains vulgar language, talks about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raping migrants, and includes graphic details of sexual violence.
A concerned dad contacted “unDivided” podcast host Brandi Kruse, who posted the story on X.
The Center Square obtained a copy of the novel to verify its contents, which includes a character discussing the plight of illegal immigrants risking their lives to enter America.
“Half of them ending up dead or burned up so bad that when someone finds them, their skin is black, and their lips are cracked open … and half after that picked up by la migra and sent back to where they came from or beaten or arrested. The women raped in the a–,” the author writes.
“La migra” is a Spanish slang term for U.S. immigration authorities, including ICE.
There are other very graphic sexual references throughout the novel.
The Center Square reached out to the school district for comment on the assigned reading.
“The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez tells the story of two immigrant families navigating life and belonging in the United States,” HSD Chief Communications Officer Tove Tupper said in an email. “The book was selected because it supports key learning goals for ninth-grade students, including analyzing character development, exploring themes of identity and belonging, and understanding diverse perspectives. It has been used for a couple of years in Evergreen High School 9th-grade language arts classes.
“We recognize that some materials used in high school courses may include mature or sensitive content appropriate for the grade level. As part of the school’s routine syllabus distribution process at the start of the year, Evergreen provided information to families about course materials, including this book, noting that some readings include mature themes such as profanity and/or violence. The school also invited families to reach out with questions and concerns, and offered alternative learning options if requested.”
Comments in response to Kruse’s X post about the book ranged from disgust to outrage.
“Washington state leftists are pedophiles and groomers,” wrote one commenter.
Another wrote, “Disgusting curriculum for 9th grade students in Highline School District. Now is the time to call the Superintendent Dr. Ivan Duran and take action to register your complaint.”
“School choice, now,” someone else posted. “Public schools are corrupted beyond repair.”
“Home school, your kids. No matter what you think you gain by sending your kids to public school, it isn’t worth it,” read another comment.
