75(th):contemporary legend

a little research done into the different views/superstitions:

The sinister urban legend:
in SA its to advertise where marijuana sold by a snyman
in the US to advertise where crack cocaine is used and sold or relate to a place where Heroin is sold to symbolize the fact that once you take it you can never 'leave': a reference to the addictive nature of the drug.

The less (than) sinister:
commemorate the end of a school year, or a forthcoming marriage as part of a rite of passage...in some countries it has been said that when a young man has lost his virginity he tosses his shoes over telephone wires to announce this to his peers.Also Boy Scouts throw their boots over the entrance sign at base camp, a famous tradition originating from the military.

The overly symbolic:
In some cases, shoes tied together and hanging from power lines or tree branches signify that someone has died. The shoes belong to the dead person. The reason they are hanging, legend has it, is that when the dead person's spirit returns, it will walk that high above the ground, that much closer to heaven.

Another superstition holds that the tossing of shoes over the power lines outside of a house is a way to keep the property safe from ghosts. Yet another legend involves that shoes hanging from telephone wires signals someone leaving the neighborhood onto bigger and better things.

all that said this was in dobsonville in soweto - no clue why the shoe was there...