"Shoe Tossing" - An Arab Perspective

When something big happens in the Arab world, all Arab-Americans suddenly become "experts" having to answer questions from our non-Arab friends about what is going on. Consequently, since the news broke yesterday about Iraqi reporter Muntazer al-Zaidi throwing his shoes at President Bush during the press conference, I have been inundated with questions such as: "Why did he throw his shoes?" "What does a shoe represent in Arab culture?" "Is a wing tip shoe more of a statement than a sandal?" "Did the reporter throw the shoes he was wearing or do Arabs carry spare shoes with them to throw when they are angry?"

As an Arab-American, I'm happy to share my take on this incident. First, however, I sincerely want to note that while many people in the Arab world (and the US) do not like President Bush, I have received numerous comments from my Arab friends saying that this type of behavior makes Arabs look bad. I agree with that sentiment but it should be noted that there were at least 30 or 40 other pairs of Arab shoes in the press conference that were not thrown. In fact, many of the Iraqi reporters tried to stop the "shoe insurgent." I can only hope that as a consequence of this incident, Arab-American reporters like Helen Thomas won't have to attend press conferences shoeless.

Now back to "Shoegate." It's true that in the Arab world the bottom of the shoe holds an infamous place. It is the lowest part of our body and by intentionally showing it to another person it indicates that you feel that person is beneath you. As you may recall, Iraqis in mass flung their shoes at the Saddam Hussein statute after it was torn down a few years back. (A person looking to make some real money in the region should invent shoes that have little strings connected to them so you can retrieve the shoe after throwing it - but I digress.)

But lets be honest - in what culture is getting a shoe thrown at you while making a speech considered a compliment? Is there a place in this world were a person considers his speech a failure if by end of it the stage isn't littered with shoes?

A few of my Arab friends have noted that their parents have thrown shoes at them to punish them when they were bad - but it's all part of "tough love." Is there a chance that the Iraqi reporter really was offering some form of this tough love to President Bush?

Well, when you couple the shoe toss with the statement made by the Iraqi reporter in the moments before: "This is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog" - it probably was not the expression of a love by a parent to their wayward child. (I should note that many of my Arab friends have also commented that if it was an Arab mother -and not a male reporter throwing the shoes - she would have hit her target since Arab mother's have amazing accuracy with shoes.)

So it wasn't tough love. Could the reporter's action be considered an unorthodox but legitimate form of journalism? Possibly if he had at least made his statement to President Bush in the form of a question, such as: "Mr. President, do you want a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, you dog?" and then threw the shoes. Perhaps then he would have had a leg to stand on - a leg, of course, that ends with no shoe on it.

In watching the clip closely, I was intrigued by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki who didn't even move when the first shoe was thrown as if this is a normal occurrence at his press conferences. Perhaps he was thinking: "It's just Muntazer again asking a question -and here comes his follow up." Or maybe the Prime Minister was frozen in anger thinking to himself: "How can we move up to a First world country if we have guys throwing shoes at press conferences?!"

Although I must say President Bush dodged the shoe rather impressively - to be honest, it looked like this wasn't the first time Bush had to dodge a shoe thrown at him in anger. Interestingly, Bush had a rather defiant -almost playful look in his eyes after the first shoe which will play well in the Arab world: A confident leader who can take what you throw at him - literally - and come back for more.

One of the most troubling parts of this event to me though was, where was the Secret Service when this guy was taking off his shoes? At this point it seems that Secret Service not only won't take a bullet for Bush, they won't even take a size 10 loafer.

I truly hope that in the future when Barack Obama visits the region as president, no Arab reporter will throw his shoes at him. Although I would predict that if a shoe were thrown at Obama while he was speaking, Barack would have dodged it in the vein of "Neo" from "The Matrix" - moving gracefully in slow motion while still answering questions. I just hope we never have to find out how he will have to react.

Follow Dean Obeidallah on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Deanofcomedy

Comments

[Chaimirija]

Dean, you are a great writer!

I don't usually laugh out loud, thanks!

[longtimewatcher]

Throw the book at him, not a shoe.

[Poldolino]

sooner or later some disappointed hippy will throw a flip-flop at obama.

it's a safe bet that he learned how to dodge a few missiles in his community organizing days.

the secret service may have to stop him slapping the person with their own sandal.

[Scales]

Throwing Shoes is wrong.

[kiwii]

Very significant piece of writing nevertheless with this whole incident I can't help but question..­what is the world coming to when a way of speaking up and conveying an opinion is throwing shoes at a so called world leader?! And if reporters are going to start doing this then what is left? I mean I can't wrong the guy for doing that and he really got his message through but this is exactly the problem! And how was someone who is that dense elected twice!? gosh!!

[jillteresa]

Considering how the system has failed the Iraqi's, and Americans, and practically every other citizen on Earth, by allowing a brazen war criminal to parade around the world as a respected citizen, I think that a flung shoe falls far short of what is deserved. I am not a supporter of capital punishment, but according to laws around the world, including our own, Bush and Cheney should be tried and executed for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The fact that this reporter is being held for throwing a shoe at W is laughable.

[tjboyo]

Thank you for a very entertaining and rational Arab perspective article. I was beginning to think that rational and entertaining articles didn't exist at The Huffington Post. Most are laden with emotional irrational left-wing nonsense. This one was great.

I had always thought the shoe was a Muslim symbol (not just Arab.) I remember reading about the Somolia people being offended when the troops would flyout with their boots dangling out of the helicopters (no offense intended but definitely taken that way.)

I thought the Iraqi PM response (or lack there of) was curious too. You'd think a man living in a country with so many bombings would have freaked a little to see anyone throwing anything (can you say "shoe bomber".) Mr. Malaki was completely unphased (as was the Presidents security detail.)

[YolandaD]

Give Arabs a bad name?

NO WAY! This is the kind of savy and witty critique WE WANT TO SEE!

NO ONE WAS HURT! NO INNOCENT LIVES WERE LOST! Hence there is nothing to distract us from Mr. Muntazer al-Zaidi message.

Mr. Muntazer al-Zaidi message was heard loud and clear! It carries symbolism that resonates around the world.

KUDOS to Mr. Muntazer al-Zaidi!

[thankulord13]

This man did not give Arabs a bad name what he showed was something that had been missing in American society since 9/11 and that is courage. We as a nation fell into the trap that this president and his gang had set for the American people. I don't know of any way to show ones dissatisfaction with Mr. Bush. He has done some of the most horrendous acts in this nations history!

[superlive]

Yikes!

By ducking Prez Bush allowed the AMERICAN Flag directly behind him to be struck by a shoe TWICE!

Surely, this escapade is a symbolic representation of the entirety of the Bush Presidency.

I was wrong. There is a God and he loveth the IRONY....

[samerbayer]

I think Bush in addition to achieving personal revenge against Saddam, had good intentions for Iraq. It is true that he was naive and didn't have good information but he was trying to build democracy in Iraq. unfortunately Iraq is tough place to have democracy with it is sectarian divisions and anyone with minimum knowledge would have known that. We have alot of american soldiers and iraqi's who paid dearly for impossible mission.

[snesich]

Oh please! Bush had no "good intentions" for Iraq or for the Iraqis. His only intentions were 1) Power and Control in the region; 2) Access to Iraq's oil on behalf of oil companies; 3) Handing over billions to "private contractors" who are part of his small circle of conservative, connected friends.

Anyone who believes otherwise is either a fixated ideologue and/or Bush supporter, or extremely gullible and easily deceived.

[OTOT]

Delightful article! Maybe the reporter was just trying to give W some sole/soul.

[DeniseD]

Wow, Arab parent throw shoes at their kids? And I thought I had it bad, but my dad just yelled and was verbally abusive.

[ArmyCentrist]

Think that's bad, try having West Indian parents...­omg!

[Chaimirija]

Parents from the 'old country' have a different way of doing things

[Tituba]

It would be a crass abstention if you don't mention the half a decade of frustration the Iraquis have suffered, and the suffering that is still to come. With no decent, real and truthful reason, we Americans have destroyed the lifes of people that never did anything to us, nor were they planning to. They're living with a couple of hours of electricity a day, no clean running water, no gas, no steady supply of food, no decent healthcare. And it pains my heart to think that WE did that to them for no reason at all. How ironic it is that back when Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq, as long as you didn't say anything bad about him and his posse everything was fine for you. Now that "Democracy" has arrived, well we all know how the story goes.

About the journalist throwing his pair of shows, was it wrong? Yes, it was the wrong think to do. He should had thrown the chair! Since the secret service was going to detein him anyway, what a heck, go for the gold. I don't have positive feelings for the #$*^(*&(*$ in chief, does it shows? Oh well, Merry Christmas everyone, and to all HAPPY SHOE DAY!