The Politics of Heels

I didn't wear my high heel shoes
'Cause I couldn't be taller than you

I thought this nearly naked tattooed comedian was surprisingly funny in this short where he explains why his wife doesn't wear high heels anymore. And I don't think his concern is unreasonable. I wouldn't be comfortable feeling like I look like a romantic relationship between a child and an adult in public.

But it also kind of hits that Kelsea Ballerina vibe that it's about what he wants and I'm not really interested in attacking the guy. I can't readily find a time for the clip, but let's call it a few seconds taken out of context and I don't know more.

The first time I saw Eddie Murphy, I and my husband watched the last like ten minutes of an hour-long HBO special and we both thought "Wow, what a misogynistic jerk." And then we saw it from the beginning and understood that last few minutes differently.
 
So please don't get me wrong here. I saw it and I thought he actually had a very reasonable objection that "Ew, no." rather than "I find that personally threatening!"

But it also reminded me of something I saw probably weeks ago and I don't remember it well enough to figure out how to find again. Some movie industry event apparently has this history where women who weren't in heels were denied entry or something, so several big name female stars have gone in barefoot as a form of protest because these were older women and they weren't in heels because it was painful to walk in heels or possibly more than just painful. Possibly dangerous or damaging because they have joint issues.

That hits a nerve for me. I haven't worn high heels in years because I have joint issues and other issues and I can't walk in them. It's not just uncomfortable. I can't pull it off.

Now I'm around 5'8", so when men who were around 6' tall stood up in apparent attempt to loom over me and intimidate me, I just stood up myself and they don't loom as much as they expect.

There's two social elements to high heels:

1. They are viewed as sexy and as promoting a sexy walk.

2. On average, women are typically shorter than men and being tall is one of those things society uses as a proxy for guessing who is in charge, whom you should respect and who should get promoted to leadership positions.

And maybe it's time for people to start flipping the script and focusing on some other metrics aside from this gun to our head to look like street walkers if we want to be seen as "attractive" and socially acceptable and how it's about what men or other people want.

Maybe stuff like:

1. Dating a short guy means no more ruining your back and feet.
2. Is looking like a prostitute really the best way to get respect and vie for promotion?
3. If you are mostly sitting at your desk all day, how freaking important is it to try to compete on height anyway?

I tripped across this video trying to find stuff I was looking for and kind of like it because it seems to be a husband trying to tell his wife please don't hurt yourself walking in high heels for hours at DISNEYLAND:


I'm all for a moderate heel. Sometimes those are more comfortable than flats.

But I'm not a fan of high heels generally and this fantasy clothing line is intended to be a business casual vibe, not how to sleep your way into a job. So I'm probably never going to sell high heels.