Zero, a homeless boy who is unable to provide an income for himself, steals a pair of shoes in order to provide for his basic needs. In a world in which property and business are often more important than living beings having their basic needs met, Zero must resort to stealing to survive. Zero unfortunately is arrested for taking the shoes and is sent to an immensely abusive camp in which children, who are often victims of abuse and societal neglect, are further abused and forced to work. While this is a fictional tale, both the reality of Zero's life and the reality of incredibly abusive camps for convicted teens are actual circumstances in our world. Zero is punished for navigating and surviving in a world that has been, all too often, very unkind to him.
His autobiographical essay “The Terror” tells the story of the crippling fear he experienced in his adolescence following a “beat-down” by kids on the other side of his neighborhood.
