Speaking Truth for Widows, Orphans and Those Killed in Iraq

The World Health Organization has estimated that over 151,000 Iraqi citizens have died violent deaths since 2003 when George Bush ordered the invasion of Iraq (here and here). This weekend, just six weeks before he hands over power to Barack Obama, George Bush flew into occupied Iraq and told the Iraqi people that his "war" in Iraq is not over.

Is it any surprise that his visit and his words would not be well received? An Iraqi man, Mr. Muntadar al-Zaidi, stood and said in Arabic after pitching his first shoe towards George Bush's head, "This is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog."

A 22-year-old, like al-Zaidi would have come of age during the U.S. occupation of Iraq. The dreams of many young Iraqi men have been destroyed just as their lives were barely beginning. At an age when young men like him should be able to reach with hope for their futures, instead, these young Iraqis have been forced to watch their country be obliterated by bombs falling from the skies above their homes. The huge numbers of refugees and deaths show us that most Iraqis, like al-Zaidi, have watched numerous friends, family members and neighbors flee, disappear, suffer or die. These very real human tragedies are daily occurrences. Life has gotten worse, not better. Young people like al-Zaidi have been shocked and awed...

And, now he's fed up. Who can blame him?

With his second shoe barely missing Bush's head, al-Zaidi's announced, "This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq."

Since I am a proponent of non-violence in resistance and protest, I'm very glad that al-Zaidi's shoes missed Bush. I would not have wanted Bush to have a bump on his head. At the same time, however, I am not willing to characterize the young Iraqi man as a heretic or a fool. His actions were not joke worthy. He is not a criminal. Nor is he the only one that feels the way he feels. He is facing insurmountable odds, trying to speak up and be heard as a citizen of a ruined country. I hope no more harm comes to him.

To many Iraqis, the young man's singular protest may seem lame and impotent when compared with the gigantic untenable mess Bush has created in that country. The long nights of fear, illness, hunger and tears that many Iraqi citizens have endured make Bush's little shoe incident seem like a tiny meaningless blip.

Still, that young man's words surely girded the hopeless in Iraq with new found strength to face another day. One of their own actually spoke Iraqi truth to American power.

The war torn are surely strengthened by the hopes that the world heard that young man's anguished truth about the "widows and orphans and all those killed" in their country. Iraqi losses are real, horrific, life-changing and, for many, too much to endure. They want the world to know about their pain and their losses. They want us to know.

I'm glad that the young Muntadar al-Zaidi was able to speak his truth. Many others have heard his words too.

My heart breaks for the pain and suffering he and other Iraqis have been witness to. I know that an apology from me may also seem like a tiny blip in proportion to the unbelievable large-scale devastation the Iraqis now live with every day.

Still, though he may never read my words, I want to extend my personal apology to that young Iraqi man.

I am so very, very sorry for all of the hurt that my country has brought into your life.

Comments (2)

LyndaP

I also express apologies to the Iraqi people on behalf of my country. I am ashamed beyond words as to what "we" have done to Iraq. The Bush administration consists of war criminals and they should all be tried as such. I can only imagine how the reporter who threw his shoes at shrub simply "ignited". He may or may not have had this purpose in mind when he went to the briefing. But, obviously, he was let into the whole affair so I would assume he wasn't a "threat" to the chickenhearted loser at our helm. What this reporter did is THE LEAST of what shrub deserves.

Posted by LyndaP | December 15, 2008 8:29 PM

Posted on December 15, 2008 20:29

Nora Thomason

I pray the young man will not be harmed. I think that the commenter above, Lynda, might have a very good point. That man may not have gone in there with the intention to throw his shoes, but when he sat that close listening to the glib gravel voice of George Bush say that the "war" is not over yet, his pent-up hurt and frustration may just have overtaken him. I fully understand how that feels to be at the end of your rope, unable to put up with anymore propaganda or poor management. I think most Americans are at their wit's ends with Bush - why should it surprise us that an Iraqi - any Iraqi - would find that he has no more patience for Bush?

Great blog Lucy.

Posted by Nora Thomason | December 16, 2008 9:28 PM

Posted on December 16, 2008 21:28

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