2026-07-01
The Whipple Building
In the parking lot
an African man
straightens and restraightens
the suits on the boys.
In the security line
ia 5-year-old with a large bow
on the back of her dress
interprets for her family.
Today’s lobby instructions
are in Español and Kaqchikel,
a branch on the tree
of Mayan languages.
In the waiting room
the air is impossibly thin.
Many with hair tightly braided,
contain themselves on a chair.
These are the people who received a
“Notice to Appear ” and have done so.
On one court docket
there are 99 names.
When someone exits the courtroom
everyone looks at their face
for a clue of what
might happen to them.
Some are detained,
others allowed to leave.
Those who did not come
will be hunted.
On leaving,
the lot filled with humanity,
making phone calls, waving their arms,
an elder still moving beads on a rosary.
Written June 2026
Whipple is a federal building which contains an ICE Detention Center and Immigration Court for removal and deportation hearings.