Drugs? Bullying? …?

 

Have you ever seen shoes handing from light, telephone wires and thought why they are there?

The act of “shoe tossing” - in which shoes are tied together by their laces and thrown across power lines - is considered by some to be a folk sport. Everyone has seen it, yet no one really knows what the shoes symbolize or why shoe tossing happens in the first place.

There are many reasons or legends why there are shoes hanging from wires. The most popular one being bullying. According to some urban folks, bullies steal the shoes off their victims and toss them on the wires, where they cannot be retrieved.

Popularly, shoes on a telephone wire are said to be linked to organized crime, signifying the location of gang turf, or commemorating the death of a gang member. They are also rumored to commemorate an event, like the end of a school year or a wedding. The shoes are also rumored to mark a spot for drug deals.

Perhaps all of these reasons are true to some extent, however, I saw a bicycle way up high and wondered what they were selling at that spot. What do you suppose it is?

Written: February 25, 2024

Photo: Personal file ( Meire Marion)