Whereas, “Walk A Mile In Her Shoes” is an event that was planned for March 5, 2014 and;

Whereas, various groups of women of color feel this event is regressive and does not address the real issues and concerns of rape, sexual assault, and gender violence and;

Whereas, the event claims to be “an opportunity to raise awareness about the serious epidemic of sexual violence and highlight the importance of students being a part of the solution” and;

Whereas, the event lacked in effectively educating the campus on how these injustices are perpetrated and continue to hurt women, especially women of color and;

Whereas, the organizers of the event were presented with the following grievances,

1. The event was founded by Frank Baird (a man).

   1. The event aims to empower men; however, the focus becomes the victimization of women as something that harms men, instead of simply saying that women’s victimization itself warrants addressing, and thus creating a narrow narrative of addressing these injustices.

   2. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with the idea of a man supporting women/women's rights-- the problem lies in the assumption that a man can, as the title suggests, "walk a mile in her shoes" and claim to understand the experience of women. The fact that this was created by a man implies that the power to challenge men to condemn sexual violence is only taken seriously when a man calls for it.

2. The event at UCI specifically champions men in the Greek community as allies, which is suspect when considering all the issues of sexual violence that occur time and time again at Greek events.

3. The event when hosted last April drew many laughs and not actual awareness.

   1. Therefore, we question if this event is really raising awareness or simply allowing men to lampoon themselves and further act on a shallow level to show  their “contribution” and “allyship” to women.

4. The event has strong themes of transmisogyny.

   1. The act of wearing high heels is traditionally viewed as “feminine”/”femme” attire, and for men to use this as a tool for raising awareness is an insult and further trivializes and stigmatizes the experiences of trans women.

   2. This is offensive because this event makes a mockery of gender performance and gender expression, which often leads to the criminalization and profiling of trans bodies.

5. The event contributes to the disgusting idea that what defines a woman and what it means to be a woman is to wear high heels.

   1. The notion of wearing heels to express gender is outdated and does not accurately reflect the ways in which bodies are perceived in society.

   2. Walking around in heels for a mile is not what it means to be a woman. It comes nowhere near to the experiences of victims of sexual assault, gender violence, and rape.

   3. Womanhood is not defined by the footwear women choose.

   4. Women do not suffer from sexual violence due to the clothes they do or do not wear.

6. The event does not address rape, sexual violence, and sexual assault whatsoever.

   1. What change does marching in high heels make?

   2. Do the men who participate think about the serious issue of sexual assault for the rest of the year or even the rest of the day?

   3. Just because you are walking a mile in heels does not mean that you have walked a mile in a survivor’s shoes.  

Whereas this open letter has already received direct signatures from 60 women of color and 30 supporters and;

Whereas the event organizers have replied to this letter with a refusal to cancel the event and;

Whereas the VIP coordinators modified the event after they were informed about concerns regarding the event,

Whereas the Campus Assault Resources and Education (CARE) office and professional staff have expressed their own concerns about, and do not support nor sponsor the event and;

Whereas, the “Walk a Mile In Her Shoes” event is another layer on top of the violence women, whether they are students, workers, staff, or professors, face within the education system on a daily basis and;

Let it be resolved that ASUCI Legislative Council supports and echoes these student concerns and;

Let it be further resolved that ASUCI Legislative Council calls upon the CARE office and Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) Program event organizers to take the following steps:

• Assert a simple and clear message of “do not commit rape or assault people” and “do not condone or make rape jokes” without theatrics

• Facilitate the implementation of a year long educational program on sexual assault, gender violence, and rape for all campus communities but especially the Greek community

• Implement a policy that CARE affiliated student staff must take courses on Gender and Sexuality, which are currently offered every quarter through UCI’s Department of Gender and Sexuality Studies

Let it be finally resolved that ASUCI Legislative Council strongly urges the VIP coordinators and the VIP advisor to deter hosting a “Walk a Mile” event in the future.