THE RETURN OF THE INQUISITION
A teen-age boy and his parents
attend a Farmer’s Market.
The boy’s arms are tightly bound
in a homemade straightjacket
adorned with the label AUTISM.
Only the twitching fingers
of his hands protrude.
He stands alone on a corner—
talking to himself, waiting like a dog
tied up in a leash in an agitated state
waiting for his parents to finish shopping.
He comforts himself with Torquemada-like
fantasies of revenge.