By FāVS News Staff
Eastern Washington
Spokane jury convicts three protesters in federal ICE demonstration conspiracy case
A federal jury in Spokane found protesters Jac Archer, Justice Forral and Bajun Mavalwalla II guilty on conspiracy-related charges tied to a 2025 demonstration outside the ICE detention facility. The protest began after former Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart urged residents on Facebook to block a bus transporting detained immigrants, including a young Venezuelan man he had supported.
Hundreds gathered, and nine people were eventually charged with federal felonies alleging conspiracy to impede or injure federal officers or damage property through force, threats or intimidation. Six defendants accepted plea deals, while Archer, Forral and Mavalwalla, who are known as the “Spokane 3,” went to trial. After seven days of testimony and eight hours of deliberation, the jury returned guilty verdicts on varying counts, including aiding and abetting. The charges carry possible penalties of up to six years in prison and $250,000 in fines. Defense attorneys plan to appeal and seek to overturn the verdict at a future Rule 29 hearing.
RANGE will update this story on their website.
Indigenous Eats wins $20,000 grant for cultural programming initiatives
Spokane-based restaurant Indigenous Eats won one of over 500 grants nationwide from an Amex Shop Small Grant from American Express and Main Street America. The grant will provide Indigenous Eats with $20,000 in funding to support Native Trivia Nights and other cultural events.
Western Washington
First-ever Eid celebration planned at Bellevue Downtown Park on May 30
Community members are invited to attend the first-ever Eid Celebration at Bellevue Downtown Park on Saturday, May 30, from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. The family-friendly event will feature food trucks, live performances, local vendors and community booths as organizers bring residents together to celebrate Eid in a festive atmosphere. Organizers say the celebration aims to highlight culture, community and togetherness while creating a memorable experience for families and friends across the region. Attendees are encouraged to bring loved ones and participate in the daylong gathering at the downtown Bellevue venue.
WA Democrat breaks with party to back U.S, House bill on transgender student policies
Southwestern Washington Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez joined seven other Democrats in voting for a Republican-backed U.S. House bill targeting what supporters call “gender ideology” in schools.
The legislation would require elementary and middle schools to obtain parental permission before changing a student’s pronouns, name or gender markers in official records. It would also block federal funding for schools that allow such changes without parental consent and restrict federal dollars from supporting instruction related to “gender ideology.”
Additionally, schools would need parental approval before students could use bathrooms or locker rooms matching their gender identity instead of biological sex. The bill passed the House 217-198 and now moves to the Senate, where its future remains uncertain. LGBTQ+ advocates criticized the proposal as harmful to transgender youth, while supporters framed it as a parental rights measure that could conflict with Washington state privacy protections.
WA-raised author explores identity, faith and belonging in debut verse novel
Washington-raised Native Hawaiian author Kauakanilehua Māhoe Adams is celebrating the release of her debut novel-in-verse, “An Expanse of Blue,” published by Heartdrum. The young adult novel follows Aouli Elizabeth Smith, a Native Hawaiian teenager growing up near Seattle as she navigates identity, family tensions, friendship, first love and faith. Struggling to fit into her majority-white school, church life and even her own family, Aouli eventually discovers healing and self-expression through poetry and ancestral spirituality.
Adams, who grew up in Kent, Washington, said the story draws heavily from her own upbringing in a Catholic Native Hawaiian household in the Pacific Northwest. While studying for her MFA at Vermont College of Fine Arts, adviser Melanie Crowder encouraged her to transform the project into a verse novel, a change Adams said “unlocked” the story.
The novel also explores the tension between Western religion and Indigenous traditions, reflecting the experiences of many Native Hawaiian families living outside Hawaiʻi. Adams said she wanted to highlight the growing Native Hawaiian diaspora in Washington while honoring the Pacific Northwest landscape that shaped her childhood.
Adams will be at Elliott Bay Book Company on Friday, May 29, at 7 p.m. for a conversation with Keliko K. M. Adams. 1521 10th Ave., Seattle; 206-624-6600; elliottbaybook.com; free, RSVP recommended.
Idaho
Hindu statesman to address Brigham Young University-Idaho students on interfaith dialogue
Distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed addressed students at Brigham Young University-Idaho on May 28 during an event organized by the university’s Interfaith Leadership Society. The society, founded in 2020, has more than 400 student members, most affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Faculty from the Department of Religious Education are also expected to attend.
Zed, president of the Universal Society of Hinduism and recipient of the World Interfaith Leader Award, is internationally recognized for promoting interfaith understanding. He serves on several global interfaith and religious diplomacy boards and has participated in prominent faith discussions, including The Washington Post’s “On Faith.”
In Idaho, Zed has previously delivered opening prayers in the State Senate and several city councils.
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