HIGH HOLY DAYS IN OUR TOWN

HIGH HOLY DAYS IN OUR TOWN

Red cape against chain-link fence,

hooded black cowl underneath

extending with arms waving

to those boarding Swift Air,

men and women

ankle-chained, chains around waists

and hands, ICE agents

monitoring deportation

from our small city airport.

The red-caped woman wears clothing

suitable for solemn celebration

of high holy days of medieval Christendom.

Another woman at her side blows a whistle.

There is a man with a camera.

Count to three.

When the whistle blows, the deportees

look this way. The man with the camera

photographs each person,

and the woman clothed in vestments, waves.

These are solitaries, but they are not alone.

Jim Bodeen

3 October 2019