“A poet’s work is to name the unnameable,
to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments,
shape the world, and stop it going to sleep.”
– Salman Rushdie
rename the building
Casa Padre
turn off the cameras
empty the shelves
patch the stucco
electrify the wire mesh
turn on the heater embedded
in the cement floor
count them
1400
bleach and de-lice them
wrap their toys in cellophane
tear up their newspapers
hand out foil blankets
pump in menthol mist
step towards the plexiglass
place your palms flat
watch them shit 1400 times
watch their feet burn
when they try to find each other
fill your glass
raise a toast to the homeland
shred the paperwork