Each year, an ever-increasing number of men, women and their families are joining the award-winning Walk a Mile in Her ShoesŪ: The International Men's March to Stop Rape, Sexual Assault & Gender Violence. A Walk a Mile in Her ShoesŪ Event is a playful opportunity for men to raise awareness in their community about the serious causes, effects and remediations to sexualized violence.
There is an old saying: "You can't really understand another person's experience until you've walked a mile in their shoes." Walk a Mile in Her ShoesŪ asks men to literally walk one mile in women's high-heeled shoes. It's not easy walking in these shoes, but it's fun and it gets the community to talk about something that's really difficult to talk about
: gender relations and sexual violence.
http://walkamileinhershoes.org/
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This campaign, started by a man, is perhaps well intentioned but really irks me. From the red stiletto on the web banner, to the pictures of men in fashionable heels, to the "tips for walking in heels" suggestions, it stinks of stereotypical images and perceptions of women, and of how a woman dresses invites sexual assault.
"A playful opportunity for men to raise awareness in their community about the serious causes, effects and remediation's to sexualized violence." Playful and sexual violence are two concepts that should never be associated.
I find it very sexist. Is it just me?