College students, business employees, stay-at-home moms and many others made Thursday "One Day Without Shoes," a program organized by TOMS Shoes. The goal was to bring awareness about children who must live barefoot in undeveloped countries because they have no shoes. By going barefoot here, the participants got a sense of how "hard" it is to always go barefoot through life.On the surface and to most people, TOMS' ongoing efforts are an incredibly worthy cause. The company points out that many people in Ethiopia suffer from a debilitating disease called Podoconiosis. It's essentially elephantiasis of the feet and lower legs that's caused by walking barefoot on volcanic soil. Chemicals in the soil get absorbed into the skin and cause lymphatic blockages which result in extreme swelling of the lower legs and feet. The company also shares that some children are not allowed to go to school without shoes and that cuts and sores can lead to serious infection. By bringing awareness to these situations, TOMS encourages people buy a pair of their shoes. For each pair purchased, the company then donates a pair of shoes to the unshod poor.
TOMS' efforts are certainly worthwhile and the campaign is a good way to raise awareness of these problems. It's good that a company is finding ways to put shoes on the feet of people who really need them. I obviously wholeheartedly endorse people in developed countries like ours going barefoot because I do believe that the places in which we live are friendly to such a practice.
Unfortunately, I do take issue with the way TOMS markets their products and the One Day Without Shoes campaign. This year's ODWS theme was "It's Hard Without Shoes." On the site, TOMS stated:
"Food, shelter, AND shoes facilitate life’s fundamentals. Imagine a life without shoes; constantly aware of the ground in front of you, suffering regular cuts and scrapes, tending to infection after each walk, and enduring not only terrain, but heat and cold. The problem is large, but the solution is simple. Wearing shoes and practicing basic hygiene can prevent both infection and disease due to unsafe roads and contaminated soil. By imagining a life barefoot, we can all contribute to the awareness of these conditions."If you read that and look around their online resources, you will find that the overarching message in TOMS marketing is this: Being barefoot is bad and everybody needs shoes in day-to-day life.
As someone who goes barefoot very often, I disagree. Yes, there are situations and areas of the world where going barefoot is ill-advised and yes, it's good that TOMS is helping those people. But I believe that TOMS needs to adjusts its messages to promote overall foot health, and many times that means going barefoot.
The fact of the matter is that going barefoot in developed countries is usually very safe and healthy. Our sidewalks, streets, floors and grassy areas tend to be free of dangerous objects that may harm us. Many people from "average Joes" to medical professionals see lots of benefit to overall foot health in building up strength in the feet and avoiding restrictive footwear. Reflexologists recommend going barefoot as a way to stimulate the central nervous system and provide balance to our physiology.
I recommend that you find the opportunity to go "Another Day Without Shoes" for yourself. Rediscover your feet and let them be free of restrictions. Kick off your shoes, heels, flip flops or whatever else to really feel the ground below you and reconnect with your mind the thousands of nerve endings in your feet. Walk on the ground instead of above the ground. Remember that you were born with your feet for a reason and that they are not ugly, gross or weak. They are a vital part of your body and they should not be neglected.
As President of The Primalfoot Alliance, I pledge that the organization will be reaching out to TOMS in the year ahead. They do run a wonderful business, but it's appropriate for them to give feet more credit. I think they can still sell plenty of shoes and make lots of difference. Hopefully together we can build a partnership for supporting healthy, primal feet instead of demonizing our very soles.
What do you think of TOMS One Day Without Shoes? Did you participate this year? Do you own a pair of TOMS? I'd love to have you comment below. Thanks!
Photo: TOMS Shoes
I totally disagree with TOMS Shoes, too. I'm not even sure if podoconiosis prevention necessarily requires shoes. Treatment of the early stages often involves washing the feet with water and antiseptic. What if there were adequate clean water and sanitation in Africa? The spread of many diseases could be slowed, and perhaps some diseases could be eradicated.
ReplyDeleteThis campaign doesn't even mention that filarial elephantiasis, caused by parasites, is the leading cause of elephantiasis worldwide. It can affect any part of the body, and treatment involves anthelmintic drugs that have potentially serious side effects. It cannot be prevented with shoes, but it can be eradicated with effective sanitation.
Well, I can't say that I participated as I have to wear shoes (boots actually) to work, but I too think the problem is the message rather than what TOMS is actually doing. People should be barefoot by choice rather than circumstance, so if the goal is to provide children with shoes so that they have the choice to protect their feet on those occasions when such protection is perhaps needed (protection from heat, cold, disease, or whatever) then I have no issue with that. But we shouldn't act as though not having shoes is the gravest of circumstances, when lack of access to clean water, food, medicine, and shelter are far more prevalent and serious than mere lack of footwear.
ReplyDeleteIm doing a charity report and i picked toms one for one because i think what they are doing is a great cause
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