The College of Coastal Georgia’s third annual Walk a Mile in Her Shoes gathering held Wednesday morning, Oct. 11, garnered social media attention.
Videos of numerous suited-up men rocking red high heels surfaced across the web in support of bringing awareness of domestic violence to the public. Even campus police officers participated. Under a video posted by TikToker @naturallydej_, commenters were impressed by the men’s commitment and how well they walked in the shoes.
“I can barely stand in heels, my damn self.”
“They walking better than me. Love it.”
“They gained my respect cuz I can’t even do a mile.”
“Men finally put themselves in our shoes.”
The international men’s march aims to recognize Domestic Violence Awareness Month and combat rape, sexual assault and gender violence. It’s also to fight against all violence against women. In addition to the students, numerous faculty, staff, police officers, community members, law enforcement and local government officials have joined the movement, strutting the campus in red heels.
And the College of Coastal Georgia isn’t the only one participating in the awareness march. Over the years, colleges, universities, high schools, fire and police departments, and centers have participated in the event. La Salle University in Philadelphia held its Walk a Mile in Her Shoes event in April, where over 100 participants started the walk by running in multicolored heels.
Frank Baird, a California-licensed marriage and family therapist, started the Walk after working at a rape crisis center in 2001.
Baird’s journey to creating the Walk a Mile in Her Shoes campaign started when he volunteered at a rape crises center and knew it was where he belonged. So, he went through graduate school, earning his degree and license. By observing and listening to each of his clients, he learned advocacy and activism were vital to helping those.
“The idea was inspired by Eve Ensler’s annual V-Day. I had co-directed a production of The Vagina Monologues as a fundraiser for a local rape crisis center,” Baird told the Pixel Project. “We sold out a 500-seat theater and raised a lot of money. It was also a deeply meaningful experience for the women actors, the women in the audience and the men accompanying them.”
He continued, “We came up with this wild idea that we could ask men to walk a mile in women’s high-heeled shoes. It would be fun, outrageous and, most importantly, experiential. The Walk is different from the experience of The Vagina Monologues in that the monologues are by and about women. Walk a Mile in Her Shoes is about men’s empathy and support for women.”
