Bush Protest: Shoes Thrown At White House (PHOTOS)

President Bush was given an Iraqi-journalist-style sendoff on his last full day in office Monday, as tourists and demonstrators lobbed shoes, pumps, boots, sandals and Crocs from Pennsylvania Avenue onto the White House lawn.

Before launching the operation live, the shoe-chuckers took target practice in Dupont Circle on a 20-foot-tall blow up doll of the outgoing president, decked out in the flight suit he wore aboard the "Mission Accomplished" aircraft carrier.

Unlike Muntazer al-Zaidi, the Iraqi reporter who inspired the protest, none of the shoe-throwers in the group were arrested. (Later that day, reports NBC, one man was arrested for chucking a shoe at the White House.)

Marching down Connecticut Avenue with handfuls of footwear, the group of about a hundred was on the receiving end of enthusiastic honks, thumbs-up and waves from people in the street.

The reception was almost as warm from the people guarding the White House.

"Don't hit me!" one officer behind the White House fence joked as shoes rained around him.

Tracey Primavera, a shoe-lobber from Provincetown, Massachusetts, shouted at the guard that she had a pump that would look nice on him.

Story continues below

advertisement

"I tried that. It didn't look good on me," yelled back the officer. Primavera tossed him the pump anyway.

Tourists on Pennsylvania Avenue picked up shoes and lobbed them at the White House as well. "A lot of random people joined in," noted one organizer, David Swanson. "Everybody wanted to be photographed with an "Arrest Bush" sign.

The tourists also joined a spontaneous chorus that formed. On the night of the election, thousands of people swarmed the White House and sang the old sports classic, "Hey, Hey, Hey, Goodbye." The song made a reappearance Monday, as did a number of tunes apparently written for the occasion, with lyrics such as "Hang down your head, George Bush/Hang down your head in shame," and "Take him to the Hague" -- the latter sung to the tune of "Working on the Railroad."

The target practice on the giant Bush doll began around 11:00 in the morning and was still going five hours later, as thousands of people walking through the circle stopped to pick up a shoe and wing it at the outgoing president. Some threw fastballs like al-Zaidi. Others tied several together in an attempt to land them on Bush's long Pinocchio-esque nose. Children took part. ("Okay. One more shoe, kids," said one parent.) Some folks simply walked up to the doll and kicked it in the shins. It fell over at one point and people rushed it, beating it with shoes.

Still others, like al-Zaidi, missed.

"Ah! I missed!" yelled Sharon Kerr, in town from Austin, Texas, after chucking wide of her presidential mark. She said that she felt a little like the Iraqi reporter for missing. But she noted in his defense, "He had people blocking him."

Kerr began to leave the circle but stopped. "I'm gonna go one more time. I'm gonna nail him this time," she said before winding up and striking him cleanly in the belt.

Cheryl Upshaw, in from Atlanta and sporting a full-length fur coat, hit the Bush doll high on the shoulder. "I was really trying to aim for his heart," said Upshaw, a registered nurse who owns a home healthcare agency. The throw was cathartic, she said, and it seemed to relieve some of her anger.

"It's not that I hate him," she clarified. "I don't hate him personally. I hate what he has done to this country."

Medea Benjamin, a cofounder of the antiwar group CODEPINK, said the protest was a way to "get the Bush era out of your intestines."

"I was a little reluctant because I want to be in a positive mood," she said. "I don't want to be seen as doing something violent. The shoe-throwing is borderline, but the intent is to insult, not to hurt. There's a fine line."

Once all the shoes had been tossed onto the White House lawn, the officers collected them and piled them into the back of a small truck. "The next person who throws them gets arrested," said one, though the entire pile had already been thrown.

As the protesters headed back toward Dupont Circle, a Secret Service agent left them with a parting observation.

"You all won," he said.

(Photo credit: James Sappington)

Comments

[ozamerican]

Sorry, I meant "shoe incident," not "show incident".

I do think this is one Iraqi custom that we should thoroughly embrace.

[ozamerican]

Despite my schadenfreude at the spectacle of shoes flying at George Bush effigies (and disappointment that the Iraqi show incident didn't happen years before so that, as a people, we could have perfected not only the art form but our aim), the one nagging thought I have is that many (most?) of the people throwing shoes would have voted for him in 2004.

Maybe people should slap themselves with a shoe first before they hurl it at an effigy.

Don't get me wrong, I love it. But at some point people have got to stand back and say, how did this idiot end up in the White House in the first place.

[AMC3]

One other note..it was not "book smarts" alone that got us where we are today. Being smart is only half the battle, the other half of the battle is a strong work ethic. There are plenty of people with book smarts that are not successful b/c they lack drive and determination. There are also plenty of average intelligence people who are very successful b/c they work hard. I am not even sure why I am having this discussion. This post is about the lack of respect and immature behavior of people in this country. Like I said before, I would not want my children to model this kind of behavior...throwing shoes at people they feel that wronged them. It is immature and just plain wrong. Silly people.

[AMC3]

farmgirl10, Do not worry, we are already paying more money than the average American in taxes. I am just against taxing different income levels at different rates. Why should my family be penalized for being successful and hardworking. We did not come into the money...we actually came from very poor families that did not want or need to ask the government for any free hands out. We paid our own way through college via student loans and then worked our butts off to get where we are today. I am not sorry or ashamed to say that yes we have been very successful and blessed but it was all the hardwork and maybe a little luck that got us in this fortunate position. We also donate heavily to schools, cancer research, and many other causes (which is more than Biden can say) so do not talk about giving back to the country. We also have numerous relatives who have graduated from Westpoint and have served in the wars.
Also do some research, the majority of partial birth abortions are not done on malformed fetuses...many of the babies have cleft lips and club feet that can be fixed after the baby is born. When I was pregnant with my first child, they told us that there was a strong chance he may have club feet. I was upset but I did not choose to abort him in the third trimester b/c of it. Third trimester abortions are awful.

[AMC3]

azyuwish, my husband scored a perfect score on his SAT's my first grader just happens to be really smart...I am not bragging and saying that he got it from me. He taught himsfelf how to count change, multiply and divide and he is six. he also memorized the whole map of the unites states and all the presidents at 3...children are like sponges if they are interested in something. He wanted to learn this stuff so we gave him the tools to do it. He wanted to know why my husband and I were not voting for Obama and we told him why...tax policies. You see my family income is over the 250,000 threshhold. Any first grader can understand the concept of money and having to pay more money to the government. We DID NOT share with our son that we strongly oppose partial birh abortions and that is another reason why I did not vote for Obama.

I think that the Obama/Osama bumper stickers were tacky as well but this post is about people having their children throw shoes at a life size doll of president Bush and not about Obama bumper stickers.

[farmgirl10]

AMC3......So the country you live in affords you the opportunity to convert your book smarts into income, yet you feel no obligation to support the system that makes you part of the richest 5%? You won't be paying that increase on taxes for the first 250k, but I guess that's not enough. It's time for people who benefit the most from our financial infrastructure to contribute accordingly. Or do you only care about yourselves and the tragically malformed fetuses involved in partial birth abortions?

[antifluff]

The majority of the people in this country can take the same route to success as AMC3. They choose not to. Now that the vote was given to people that don't own land (in today's terms that is: don't pay taxes or pay minimal taxes), they vote to enslave the people that are working to improve themselves and their families. If you think your taxes are not high enough, there are ways for you to give more of YOUR hard earned money to the gov't; don't vote to take mine. If I have extra, there are charities that I would like to support without being forced by the gov't.
If you were robbed in broad daylight, you would feel inferior, worthless, hurt, and enraged, why do you vote for the gov't to be a robber for those that work? If the taxes were equalized, everyone would scream about what they had to pay. As it is, the people that are not willing to take the same risks to be "more" successful are the first ones that will support a robber gov't.

[trdsf]

Funny, I don't see you posters bemoaning the "lack of respect" *also* man up and admit that the "Osama Bin Kerry" bumperstickers in '04 and the Obama/Osama ones last year were not only disrespectful, but slanderous.

I don't hear you disclaiming the smear campaign against Obama, insinuating that he was a "closet" Muslim and probably a terrorist (to say nothing of the inherent racism in acting as though *all* Muslims are automatically terrorists).

I don't hear you calling down the people at Palin and McCain rallies who screamed "Traitor!" and "Kill him!"--the last of which is *definitely* illegal.

If you made maybe just a *little* attempt to be even-handed, I might have a little respect for you. But that's asking way too much, obviously. Wingnuts are hypocrites in power, and hypocrites out of power. The only difference is now they're out of power, they're whiny hypocrites.

[lilbitofginger]

Generalizations are proof of ignorance!

[WoodyTanaka]

Exactly! All generalizers are ignorant.

[antifluff]

Maybe, you didn't see us disclaiming the above "smears" because we quietly stopped them when that stuff was presented to us. Conservatives tend to listen to reasonable conversation, unlike the far left that think it is THEIR freedom of speech that should be respected and try to stop anyone that disagrees with them from speaking by rude, obnoxious acts.
Maybe we felt that reasonable people (conservatives) would hear falsehoods and research them and know they were false. No need to support a person you disagree with, just don't bear false witness (unlike the far left).
If you want to compare behavior at rallies for McCain/Palin vs Obama/Biden, the closest comparison I can think of: working ADULTS vs spoiled ADOLESCENTS (using bad language, throwing things).

[azyuwish]

For people who think throwing shoes at a blow up doll of George Bush is violent or over the top, I have this to say:

The President is an elected, official, he is in the White House to be OUR PROXY. He is there to represent the will of the American people. He is not a prima donna, he or SHE is not a Monarch, nor a god, or demi-god and certainly not above contempt.

In uncivilized countries or territories, abominable leaders are kidnapped, be-headed, hanged etc. What was done to this president for his LONG LIST of abominable behaviors, acts of cowardice, neglect (Katrina), lies (Iraq), cronyism (Katrina and Iraq) has been EXACTLY ZERO. Nada. Zip. He gets to go live in relative peace and total luxury in his exclusive gated community new home in Dallas. Wow, tough break.

So some of his nation's countrymen who despise what he has done and who he has actually served during his 8 years, throw some shoes at a doll as a last protest? He has gotten off EASY. It does not show disrespect to the office of the President; on the contrary. It shows that when such a person as Bush occupies the office and performs so abysmally, THEY are the ones who disgrace the office. Throwing shoes just lets that be known.

[lilbitofginger]

So you would prefer him to be kidnapped or hanged or beheaded? The thing is we do not live in an uncivilized country and this is not about Bush's presidency but about people behaving badly and immaturely. To condone it makes you much more like a 5 yr old than a mature citizen of this country.

[antifluff]

Funny, the way the Pres Obama supporters acted reminded me of the protests you see in a third world country. Spoiled children throw tantrums/shoes, their parents are supposed to stop them. The way the left treated our ex-Pres was extremely immature and has invited anyone in the future to behave the same way towards some one they don't like. Shame.

[yellowroseoftexas1]

After I watched the most memorable, moving, spritual togetherness of Americans in unity over the :
Igauguration of our 44th President Obama, I am saddened to read and also disgusted to the lack of respect of human decency for another! I am ashamed and embarrassed to read that people in our great nation conspired together to give last insults to injury of our now former Presidnt George W. Bush, in the greatest shame and display of anything but unity and human decency. Whoever you protesters are, have you no decency or shame? You erected a plastic doll portraying the former president of the USA, on the outside lawn of our whitehouse, using it for target practice with a banner saying give bush the boot, and then threw shoes at the white house too. This is not a peaceful protest at all, but one full of anger and hatred for another human being. How would you feel if the entire weight of our nation was on your back and you were blamed for all the problems?

[silqworm]

Bush is a war criminal. There will be no peace until he is brought to justice.

[bluesman62]

you mother is a criminal for having you

[AMC3]

Should we start throwing shoes at bad parents and bad teachers. Or how about at fat lazy obese americans? Shold we blame obesity on the Bush admin. as well? When are people going to hold themselves accountable for some of the problems our country is facing today. Did Bush hold a gun to people's heads and tell them to buy houses they could not afford, to spend money they did not have? A lot of the economic problems in this country can be traced back to the democrats pushing for everyone to achieve the American dream ( home ownership). Housekeepers were buying 800,000 houses with only 50,000 down. Did Bush tell them to buy the house? Did Bush tell us to eat the processed food and junk that we allow to pass our mouths and contribute to the cost of healthcare? NO. Show a little respect and do not throw shoes at the former leader of our country. I do not agree with a lot of Obama's beliefs and policies but I do not allow my children to disrespect him and talk badly about him, although they know that he is going to cost us a lot of money in taxes b/c we are considered rich. The shoe throwing is uncivilized. Silly silly stupid americans. I am ashamed of you all.

[bluesman62]

Finally an intelligent person on the bluffington post . I had almost lost hope I Thank you

[lilbitofginger]

Agreed!

[AMC3]

Should we start throwing shoes at all the parents out there who are doing a bad job? Or what about at the people who leveraged themselves like crazy and bought houses they could not afford. Maybe we should throw shoes at the fat lazy obese americans and blame obesity on the Bush administration as well. When are people going to start taking accountability for their actions instead of blaming someone else for their problems. I think that that I do not hate Bush b/c I was smart and did not buy a house I could not afford. I came from a dirt poor family and went to college on student loans that I paid back, then worked my ass off and get this SAVED my money. My husband and I put down 60 percent when we bought this house. The people who are anger at Bush are the one's that have failed themselves. show a little respect and teach your children to respect the people who have worked hard for this country. I do not really care for Obama but when my first grader talks poorly about him and his tax policy...I tell him that now he is our president and we have to support him even if we do not agree with his views or policies.

[azyuwish]

Your first grader talks about Obama's tax policy? Bwaaaaa! Riiiiight!

I can always spot the trolls, your exaggeration gives you away. Complete b.s.

[jadeba]

OMG! This is hilarious - I did think about chucking a croc or two at the tv when 43 left in the chopper...it was so good to see him go...after 8 long years, he's finally gone. He left us a huge mess but at least he's gone. Sorry, Texas, you got him back.

[redcelt]

"Okay. One more shoe, kids," said one parent.
Partisan squeals of disapproval notwithstanding, this funny little event was part of the cure for what has been ailing us for eight long years. And the best thing is it is now part of George Bush's historic legacy and there's not a damned thing he can do about it.

[lilbitofginger]

Lovely...Parents encouraging this sort of immature disrespect. Sounds about right in today's world.

[icemilkcoffee]

I love it. Too bad I wasn't around! Sounds like great fun and games. Bush deserves to be humiliated.

[whatevahs]

Like a bunch of spoiled little brats. These immature and ignorant jackholes are the reason the world looks down on the U.S., not President Bush!!

[bbriani3842]

Yeah. . .that's right. . .it's all their fault. They are the reason we're losing our stature in the world.

[whatevahs]

When you see another country where the media shows the citizens acting like a bunch of animals, what does that tell you about that country and the citizens? When you see a country where the citizens question and criticize their leader(s) in a mature and logical way, what does that tell you about that country and its citizens?

[lneely]

It isn't that we invaded a country on false premises. It isn't that we've alienated our allies over the past eight years. Couldn't be?

Absolute idiocy.

[Craig Terrell]

lneely don't forget Bush allowed the invasion of not 1, but 2 countries., and not only did we alienate our own allies, we created a slew of new enemies. Absolutely deplorable and disgusting the way Bush has managed this country's affairs.

As far as the shoe throwing at the effigy is concerned, I say, "Way to Go!." Wish I had been there.
I hope this incident was broadcast around the world

[whatevahs]

Ah yes, those "peace loving" liberals truly show their extremely violent pro-hatred streak when they get together don't they?

[icemilkcoffee]

Throwing shoes at a blow-up doll is 'violent'? You GOPer's must be really attached to your blow-up dolls!

[lilbitofginger]

Oh, I know you can't be that stupid...

[fsuthai]

Put a sock in it, 'whatevahs'! The entire world is celebrating the fact that the 'Bush Era' is over and President Barack Hussain Obama has already done more in one day to restore America's reputation than Bush/Cheney did in eight years! Matter of fact, they never did ANYTHING positive for our country!

[lilbitofginger]

Oh yeah, that good for our country on the first day meaning "throwing the most expensive inauguration in history using government money" Yeah, you're right!

[jadeba]

Oh, please, it's not as if anyone got shot in the face! That's what "r"s do, then they make someone else report the crime. Anytime an "r" criticizes anyone for hatred or violence it's a joke. Christianity, hatred and violence seem to be their creed.

[lilbitofginger]

so, it's not hatred? Because nobody was shot? Have you been reading the comments?