Are high heels used to make women weaker?

[angell84]

I am in a cafe having a cup of tea with a friend.

A small woman stumbled in, in high heels that she could barely walk in. She was with a large domineering man - he was striding ahead, and she could barely keep up.

I looked at her, and I had a thought that I have had a few times.

Why do women wear high heels? And Why do the fashion industry keep pushing high heels at women?

They are uncomfortableto wear, they physically hurt us in the long run- I looked at a scientific study online before I wrote this. It said that wearing high heels weaken women's muscles.

And they make us incredibly weak and vulnerable - we are barely able to walk - let alone run, wearing them. I.e it suits men with bad intentions - for us to wear them.

Does anyone else think this?

The lady with the high heel shoes in the London Bridge attack was apparently trying to take them off

I very much doubt it, having seen the CCTV pics of the shoes she was wearing. She would have had to sit down or lean on someone's shoulder to wriggle out of them. Pretty sure she just slipped.

I never wear heels because I'm very tall. I went to a wedding last summer and when I saw a picture of myself in a dress with flat shoes, I thought that a slight heel would have looked much better. It adds elegance by raising the heel off the ground.

I agree with you though that high heels, just like corsets, are designed to slow women down, make them vulnerable and incapable of participating fully in physical activities. I hope they go completely out of fashion very soon!

There have also been a number of women killed falling under trains etc. when stumbling on high heels when intoxicated.

You can run fast in bare feet on a typical tarmacked surface , as you’d find in most cities? In the Rain? Or on gravel/stones/blaze? Ok. You must have amazingly tough feet

Its not tough feet you silly billy...IF one was running from an attacker or a terrorist attack something called adrenaline would kick in, the only thing you’d give a fuck about would be saving your life you certainly wouldn’t think oh I can’t run as I’m bare feet. Once adrenaline kicks in you won’t feel pain.

You CAN’T run in flip flops either which many women wear in the summer months, ban them too I say. I mean they there are a weapon of the patriarchy to keep me weak and vulnerable.

This thread is actually a bit sad, Women like the op seem to think the rest of us are just silly little women doing what the fashion industry tells us as we can’t think for ourselves. Who needs men to bring us down, when women like that are around to do it for them....

I agree with you though that high heels, just like corsets, are designed to slow women down, make them vulnerable and incapable of participating fully in physical activities.

what physical activities?
It's perfectly possible to wear appropriate footwear for your surroundings and activities. I have 0 need for trainers in my office or at a diner party. It's not like I am expected to do a set of burpees in the middle of a meeting. Men don't do that either.

This thread is actually a bit sad, Women like the op seem to think the rest of us are just silly little women doing what the fashion industry tells us as we can’t think for ourselves. Who needs men to bring us down, when women like that are around to do it for them

This ^^

Well said @P1nkHeartLovesCake

@P1nkHeartLovesCake on the contrary. I would say that you are attacking me.

What about all the scientists that say high heels are bad for women. Are they saying that because they are judging women? No they are saying that, because they are concerned about health damage.

Your argument is wrong

angell84
don't be hypocritical, your thread had NOTHING to do with health concerns
Just re-read your own OP....

What about all the scientists that say high heels are bad for women

Nobody's arguing against that. Which point made you feel attacked?

I mean, yes you did mention it, but your OP was not about HEALTH at all, was it.

And @angell84 are you going to answer my question from up thread? Who chose your clothes this morning? You, or the fashion industry? And if it was at all influenced by the fashion industry, who decided how much influence the fashion industry had?

I hate heels and always feel sorry for the wearers. I don't think they look good, I think they make women look oppressed.

Attacking you...no 😂

I am not the one victim blaming as you were in your earlier posts about the poor woman murdered in Australia. Maybe she could of walked faster without heels..maybe not we don’t know that. Ultimately though murdering a woman isn’t ok, Man murder 100% in the wrong not the heels. Your Just as bad as someone saying she was raped because she wore a short dress/ a thong/ red stick/ smiled at him.

Some women like yourself think we should woman your way and you don’t like it when we don’t. You also want women to change footwear/ what they want to wear because of a few fucked up men that behave badly. It’s not the women that need to change.

Science has proved lots of things bad for us and they are sold everyday because people are allowed to make choices even us silly little women.

Unless they are being told they have to wear them then Yabu. I’m not a fan of heels so very rarely wear them, I know plenty of other women who love them and are rarely seen without

I find it very strange that some people believe that women loving heels is a completely objective aesthetic opinion that those women hold, uninfluenced by generations of socialisation and patriarchal ideals of female beauty. We are all a product of our society's norms. All of our opinions and preferences are created by our upbringing and culture. It's inescapable.

I think heels contribute to the objectification of women.

@JustInCaseCakeHappens what are you talking about? It says in my OP exactly about health concerns. Did you read it?

I wrote "I read scientific studies just before I wrote this post, and it said that wearing high heels weakens women's muscles".

Yes, and you could have quite easily have done this without the victim-blaming. You didn't have to bring those women into the conversation.

I like stilettos heels. I find them beautiful and elegant on somebody that can wear them. On the other hand, I am not comfortable in them, so I do not wear them. It's a choice I am very free to make because I have a plethora of choices. I can run and jump in my heeled boots, they are absurdly comfy.
All that to say that we have many choices, and that modern fashion is quite liberating. No sexism here.

Report my post 🤷🏻‍♀️ I’m not attacking you. I’m just calling you out on something

I am not taking sit on here anymore.* you should not work yourself up like that, this is starting to look silly...

All of our opinions and preferences are created by our upbringing and culture. It's inescapable

And yet, in this instance, so many seem to be escaping it on a daily basis by not wearing heels. So, not really that inescapable.

@OfaFrenchmind2 I am not having some one say to me - that I am saying a woman is responsible if she is raped. That is a horrible thing to say to some one. Like it is really f*cking hurtful. It actually made me cry.

There was a huge thread the other day on here about the level nastiness and cruelty on mumsnet. On other forums, there are rules, attacking the poster is not allowed, you are meant to attack the post, not the poster, and people are banned if they say stuff like this. People are banned of they say awful things. I don't know why mumsnet do not have more rules like this.

what physical activities?

I remember when I was in my 20s and some of my friends could barely totter to the bus stop. When we went clubbing, they had to sit down after a while because their "feet were killing them" (a phrase that is heard so often. Wtf do we wear shoes that hurt our feet?). When we walked from the club back to someone's house, they could barely keep up. Etc. etc.
Flip flops don't compare because while they're no good for running, at least you can walk a decent distance at a normal speed in them (and no, I don't wear flip flops either).

How is Pink attacking you? They aren't being aggressive either.
They are saying what a lot of us are saying.

It's ironic that on one side your saying we should have free choice because wearing heels impedes this.
Yet, on the other hand, your saying, women don't wear them.

So I shall continue to carry on wearing heels when I feel like it, and instead of trying to tear women down for their choices, I will continue to support them. And yes fuck it, even the ones who go to the supermarket in the middle of the day in their pj's. I shall retain my stance, your choice of clothing or shoes has fuck all to do with you getting attacked in some way. And heels, just like booze, cigarettes, driving, basically live comes with risks and as long as you are happy and have free choice, who gives a fuck what others think.