The 2012 edition of TOMS One Day Without Shoes will be on Tuesday April 10. For more information, log onto the link below: http://www.onedaywithoutshoes.com/ So, get your feet dirty in the name of awareness! :love:
As I posted in the other thread, this kind of thing only perpetuates the idea that bare feet are bad among the general public. Check out this kid's blog from Rhode Island. His slogan is "It's easy without shoes" as a counter to Tom's "It's hard without shoes": http://shoelessliving.blogspot.com To me it's just another day, though it might be easier to go places barefoot on that particular day, who knows.
Hm, I still don't like the general program, because many people hear a slogan only and never look any further. But their page 'why shoes are needed' has improved; it now shows a map and colors those places where a certain risk to bare feet applies. See http://www.onedaywithoutshoes.com/learn-more That is a vast improvement over the text-only FAQ of previous years, which made it seem like hookworm, jiggers and podoconiosis were simply 'barefoot' problems, always and everywhere, regardless of where you lived. This part of their FAQ also seems to be more aimed at those places where shoes are a useful tool, rather than always/everywhere: Are there places that it is culturally common to not wear shoes? Yes, there are some places in the world where going barefoot is widely accepted. But when children are affected by disease and illness, or unable to attend school due to inadequate footwear, it is not about a cultural preference, but about the need for protection. One Day Without Shoes is about raising awareness for the children that are at risk of disease, infection and injury by going without shoes. I just hope many people will look further than the first page.
well my opinion is, this campaign is for giving shoes to children living in poor countries where they can get infections or some kind of more or less exotic disease but no proper and ready medical care so i think we should refrain from criticism because the initiative bashes our preferred way to walk or we are going to get labeled as lunatics and for some good reason too since we DO have the opportunity to choose if we want to go barefoot or shod, poor children from africa don't . the point is not about the hedonism of going barefoot in rich countries, nor creating a market for shoe making big evil corporations, it is health and freedom to choose for children living in needy and messy places.
Oh but there is! It's actually for 30 hours, and it seems to be pretty popular in high schools around my area. http://www.30hourfamine.org/ Makes much more sense than not wearing shoes for awareness. Although this TOMS thing could be a good way to initiate people to living barefoot? Maybe?
