2008 Woodie Awards
Spiky stilettos spark awareness
Marilen Bugarin
Issue date: 5/2/07 Section: News
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Occasionally toppling from the 3-inch stiletto heels and nearly rolling his ankles several times, Hypolite struggled to keep up from the rear of a 100-man long procession that looped around Brighton, Alpine and Calaveras halls.
The second annual "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes," an event that allows Sacramento State's male students to symbolically empathize with women's struggles by walking in their shoes and carrying signs with rape and domestic violence statistics, attracted more participants and spectators than the previous year, said event organizer Manuel Lopez, coordinator of the Women's Resource Center's "men's program."
"The idea is to have fun and educate the campus community on how (sexual assault and domestic violence) impacts us all," Lopez said.
"We want to get men to realize that they have a huge part in ending violence toward women," he said.
Men were offered two opportunities to join the walk this year; one set of men walked at noon while another at 3 p.m.
Senior criminal justice major Jordan Damm said he began to understand some of the struggles women go through.
"I'm in pain right now. And this is just from walking in women's shoes," Damm said. "This is just a small pinch of what girls go through."
Many women, drawn by the spectacle of men wobbling in women's shoes, were amused and appreciative of the men's commitment to see their perspective.
Sophomore pre-nursing major Saba Saghir said she was surprised to see so many men willing to do the walk and carry signs brandishing rape and domestic violence statistics.
"You know there are men out there who are against (violence against women) but you don't expect them to do something like this," Saghir said.
The noon walk garnered nearly 50 participants - mostly dormitory residents - and raised money for local battered women community services.
Freshman government major Jared Juntunen, along with three teammates from the men's rowing team, decided spontaneously to participate in the noon walk while hanging out at the Library Quad.
The four men each slipped into black and red pumps and struck bare-chested poses which they referred to as "the Spartan flex."
"I definitely will sympathize with my girlfriend now," said a relieved Juntunen, wearing his own shoes after the walk.
The 3 p.m. walk garnered nearly 100 men from the entire Greek system, as taking part in the walk was mandatory to participate in Greek Week.
Inter-Fraternal Council Society president and junior business major Adam Miller said the "philanthropic aspects" of Greek week and the misogynistic stereotype often attached to fraternities compelled him to encourage men to join in the walk.
"With any Greek system, there's always a negative stereotype. People think of movies like 'Animal House," Miller said. "But a lot of people don't see that we do a lot. Hopefully, this dispels those stereotypes."
Marilen Bugarin can be reached at news@statehornet.com
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