Come Celebrate Inaugaration Day As New Yorkers Give Bush the Boot

Finally!  The eight-year long nightmare of the Bush Administration is coming to an end Tuesday.  Celebrate with the Indypendent by coming on down to the south side of Union Square, where we’ll throw shoes at a portrait of George W.  Bush.  For more information, see below for the press release: 

Drawing inspiration from Iraqi journalist Muntadar al-Zaidi, who became a hero to millions after hurling two shoes at outgoing President George W. Bush, New Yorkers plan to give Bush a “farewell kiss” by tossing shoes at a portrait of Bush painted by artist Rebecca Migdal.

As he flung his shoes at Bush during a news conference in Baghdad last month, al-Zaidi yelled, “This is a farewell kiss, you dog. This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq.”

In that spirit, The Indypendent newspaper is offering New Yorkers the chance to give Bush their own farewell kiss by flinging shoes at a large painting of Bush.

The first opportunity to throw shoes at the Bush portrait will take place on Saturday, January 17, at the Grand Army entrance to Prospect Park in Brooklyn from 10 AM-1 PM.  A second opportunity will occur on Tuesday, January 20, inauguration day, at the south side of Union Square in Manhattan from 11 AM-2 PM. 

The Indypendent will provide shoes for throwing, and anyone can try their luck for just $1 a toss.  One-hundred percent of the proceeds will be donated to groups working to aid the five million Iraqi refugees who have been displaced by the Bush administration’s war.

“As a Mets fan, I think it’s never too early for baseball season, so I’m warming up my pitching arm to see if I can smack his smirk with a fastball,” said Ellen Davidson, a volunteer editor with the newspaper. “And whether I hit the portrait or not, I will be glad to know that this event will provide a little help to the many Iraqis whose lives have been devastated by Bush’s criminal war.”

Rebecca Migdal, the artist who drew the Bush portrait, is an animator and multimedia artist, and a published cartoonist and author. Her work has been recognized with grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Commission on the Arts and the South Carolina Arts Commission.