Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell is a fashion historian and author from Los Angeles who commonly writes about and analyzes various clothing and accessories. She has written for The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Politico, Slate, and The Wall Street Journal. Aside from writing her own books and articles, Chisman-Campbell writes and consults for universities, museums, and the entertainment industry.
In her “Sneakers Have Always Been Political Shoes” Chrisman-Campbell runs through the long history of shoes and fashion, as well as the political statements and impacts that shoes can make. Chrisman-Campbell includes specific examples of shoes throughout history that have made major political, racial, social, and ethnic impacts.
At their early stages of use, sneakers were used mainly for sports like tennis and other athletic activities. However, sneakers developed a bad reputation because they were stereotypically used by criminals. In, “Sneakers Have Always Been Political Shoes,” Chrisman-Campbell provides the example of Run-DMC defending Adidas Superstars shoes when they rapped, “I wore my sneakers, but I’m not a sneak.” Run-DMC wore a popular style of sneaker shoes, which happened to be wrongfully associated with thieves and criminals. They wrote this line to fight this stereotype and spread awareness on the issue. It’s truly awful that a large amount of people will assume someone is a criminal based off their looks. Just as sneakers can convey racial ideas, they are extremely useful in getting a political point across. At the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, Germany, political tensions were at a peak, as the hosting country was under Nazi influence. Chrisman-Campbell explains, “Jesse Owens’ dominance at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games stung the event’s Nazi hosts even more because he trained in German-made Dassler running shoes.” This event is an excellent example of sneakers being political shoes. Owens wore German-made shoes while he dominated the competition in Germany to send a message to Nazi Germany. The Nazis were attempting to use the Berlin Olympics to display a racial superiority, especially over African Americans. Owens quickly silenced them as he wore German-made Adidas shoes as he demolished the competition, fighting this racial discrimination.
While this is an excellent example of sneakers being used for political statements, I believe that not all sneakers are political shoes. Many sneakers are merely shoes used for everyday use, walking around, exercise, etc. When sneakers are intended to be used for political statements, they are very efficient. Sneakers essentially provide a canvas for the author, the wearer of the shoe, to display their opinions.
Questions and Conclusions:
Chrisman-Campbell provides excellent examples with reasoning of how shoes can be used as a medium for political expression. However, I believe that not all shoes are political. In fact, most shoes are not intended to be political. At what point does a shoe become political? In my opinion, sneakers aren’t the most effective clothing at spreading political opinions. Not everyone is always looking down at peoples’ shoes when they are walking around. Most people are looking straight forward or at eye-level. Due to this, I believe that clothing items such as shirts and hats are a better way to display an idea. What are some ways to make sneakers a better way to display political, racial, ethnic, and social opinions?
Works Cited:
Chrisman-Campbell, Kimberly. “Sneakers Have Always Been Political Shoes.” The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 2016. The Long Political History of Sneaker Culture – The Atlantic. Accessed 6 November 2023.