Shoe Fly
The pictures of this war have settled deep into my memory. The images of this day are more hopeful than I could have expected. This day – the day that Bagdad fell.
Amid the celebration, the looting, and, not so very far away, the continued fighting I can’t help but notice the shoes. Iraqi men are shedding their footwear and slapping Saddam’s likeness with them. His picture meets the sole of one man. The head of his statue meets the soles of many.
This supreme insult is a welcome act of defiance to an oppressed people. Many images usher in this historic moment. The image above is definitely one of them. Somehow a simple shoe can be just as telling.
The Iraqi people will remember Saddam as a ruthless dictator. He was their oppressor – their personal devil. I’ll remember him as the man who was repeatedly hit with a shoe. He deserved it.
