During George W. Bush’s final visit to the country that has endured indescribable death and destruction under his administration, the defiance of one brave journalist encapsulated the sentiment of people all over the world.
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Bush laughed off the incident, ignorantly claiming, “I’m not sure what his cause was.” Even before the shoe hit the ground, Bush’s propaganda apparatus and the corporate media were already spinning the act as evidence of Iraq’s progress toward democracy and tolerance of dissidence.
This much-touted tolerance, however, did not prevent Maliki’s guards from dragging al-Zaidi outside and beating him mercilessly. Blood could be seen where guards had tackled al-Zaidi, and witnesses say his cries could be heard for the duration of the news conference.
Al-Zaidi was promptly whisked away to a detention facility for interrogation, and is still being held. The journalist’s brother says al-Zaidi suffered a broken hand, broken ribs, internal bleeding and an eye injury. Al-Zaidi faces charges of “insulting a foreign leader and the Prime Minister of Iraq,” which could land him in prison for seven years.
Al-Zaidi knew full well that he would face severe consequences, but he was determined to give a voice to those who have suffered. Sitting just a few feet away from the man who, for so many, has been the incarnation of the war policy that killed over 1 million Iraqis, and maimed and displaced millions more, al-Zaidi burst Bush’s bubble and effectively ruined his end-of-term victory parade. Who would have thought that the disdain and hatred felt for Bush all over the Arab world and, for that matter, across much of the globe, would fit into a single shoe?
A spark of resistance
People from all walks of life expressed their support. An elementary school teacher in Baghdad told her students “All Iraqis should be proud of this Iraqi brave man, Muntadhar. History will remember him forever.”
Abdel-Sattar Qassem, a Palestinian political science professor at An Najah University in the West Bank, said: “Bush wanted to end his bloody term hearing compliments and welcoming words from his collaborators in the Arab and Islamic world. But a shoe from a real Arab man summed up Bush’s black history and told the entire world that Arabs hold their head high.” Palestinians are all too familiar with the realities of military occupation and U.S. imperialist policies.
Iraq’s parliament speaker announced his resignation Dec. 17 after chaos erupted during a parliamentary session discussing whether al-Zaidi should be freed. Supporters of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who has often been at odds with the U.S. occupation, called for al-Zaidi’s release.
Even Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, leader of the Bolivarian Revolution, praised al-Zaidi for his courage. The video of the incident was broadcast repeatedly on Venezuelan television.
While the U.S. corporate media has tried to discredit al-Zaidi’s actions as “inappropriate” and the ranting of a madman, the mass response has been hardly divided. Hundreds of thousands of people across the Arab world took to the streets holding up their shoes in spontaneous demonstrations in solidarity with al-Zaidi.
Syrian state television aired al-Zaidi’s picture all day, and viewers called into the program to express their admiration and gratitude to him. A large banner hung in Damascus read, “Oh, heroic journalist, thank you so much for what you have done.” The daughter of Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi awarded al-Zaidi with Libya’s Medal of Courage. Demonstrations also took place in occupied Afghanistan, which continues to suffer from U.S. imperialism’s violent drive to dominate the region.
Al-Zaidi did not throw his shoe at Bush, an individual politician; he threw his shoe at a symbol of U.S. imperialism. The demonstrations inspired by al-Zaidi were directed at the occupation as a whole. Demonstrators carried placards that read “Go Out USA” and burned American flags. The mass reaction once again laid bare the reality of Bush’s “liberated Iraq,” which Washington and the Pentagon insist on covering up with a badly tattered veil.
Since 2003, Bush has been the face of the Iraq occupation. In less than two months, president-elect Barack Obama will give it a new face. Obama has made perfectly clear that the occupation will continue. It is not Bush whom the Iraqi people want out, but the U.S. bases, and the soldiers and contractors who have painted Iraq’s streets with blood. When Obama takes office, hatred for the continuing crimes against the people of Iraq will go on unabated.
Al-Zaidi, whose Baghdad apartment is decorated with the image of revolutionary leader Che Guevara, is a true hero to those who recognize the murderous and criminal nature of U.S. imperialism, particularly those who have watched their homes, their families and their own bodies destroyed.
Al-Zaidi and all who heroically resist occupation day in and day out are a source of inspiration and strength; a reminder that we must stay resolute and steadfast in our fight against imperialism. We must fight for al-Zaidi, and the countless others locked away in U.S. detention camps. We must fight for those who take to the streets in the face of a brutal occupation, and who take up arms to repel it. We must fight, with every ounce of our strength for the widows, the orphans, and all those whose lives were lost in this senseless war of aggression.
