America Vs. Bare Feet

So what's the deal with this American aversion to barefooting? I keep reading about all these restrictions towards bare feet in US establishments and the general anti-BF sentiment. Why does a pair of unshod hooves carry such a bad reputation with them in the ol' US? It's not like they're a pair of tits.

 

stop reading the barefoot forum and it goes away.

 

Americans are prudes and we're encouraged to open our stupid mouths at every opportunity! Wonder why Trump is doing so well?

 

First of all, I'm going to say to disregard anything Society for Barefoot Living (formerly Dirty Sole Society) and Barefoot Is Legal... they want it to be a movement, not just a lifestyle. With that out of the way... it's a business decision, so they own the business and make the policies.

Now, in my case, I grew up with several barefooters in the neighborhoods and in college. Girls and women more than boys and men, but still also boys and men so it wasn't only a girl thing. Based on that... before becoming adults it was up to the parents, okay? Either that or school rules, however relaxed or strictly they were enforce. Who could go out playing barefoot, who could ride their bikes barefoot, who could walk to the nearby grocery store barefoot. Schools had their reasons for not allowing backless shoes (although some wore flip flops anyway) or no bare feet (although some left their shoes in a locker or in the car if they drove, until told to put on shoes). Once they were adults, they could make their own choices whether to be barefoot or not. Even ignoring businesses, there were basic hazards, obviously, but still... stickers (they didn't embed in the soles), thorns, bees, wasps, red ants, rough streets (abrasive), hot streets and blacktop. How much they wanted to deal with (or endure in the case of sharp and hot) was up to them... it was their bare feet, but for sure when they were kids the parents didn't want to have to remove thorns, glass, and stingers from their feet, and they knew how much hot streets they could handle even if they intentionally walked on them more to get used to it. And so on. This was long before SBL, formerly DSS, founded by who turned out to be a foot fetishist but was trying to arrange barefoot meetups... either they chose to go barefoot, or they didn't, but in some cases there were those barefoot girls that went socks only because their feet weren't ready for it even though they still didn't want to wear shoes.

Enough of that. As far as school is concerned, I don't care what SBL and Barefoot Is Legal have to say, it was a school rule. They couldn't selectively choose who went barefoot or not, so it was all across the board. That's that. Some might do it without injury, some might get an injury and have to go to the nurse's office, go home, or just deal with it. One summer school, I did see a barefoot girl limping while walking on the edge of her foot... something in it because the pavement and even the asphalt wasn't that hot yet... but she just had to deal with it since it is unlikely she brought tweezers with her. There you go: safety. As far as enforcement, some classes didn't care, some classes wouldn't allow entry without shoes... except for dance PE they did practice on blacktop to help condition their feet. Same goes for college: some classes didn't care while others did, most dining establishments wouldn't allow it (but if it was walk-up and take out then they really didn't pay attention), and then there was the weather factor and terrain factor when walking the campus.

Enough of that. So we have established that parents and schools have their rules. Now, onto businesses. First of all, I don't care what SBL or Barefoot Is Legal have to say: a bare sole collects and traps more dirt than a shoe sole ever will. Shoe soles are rubber or stiff leather, so most of the dirt does not embed. Okay, so there's the dirty sole issue, both for visibility (it's like walking in with a noticeably dirty face) and the cleanliness factor (also factoring in some grocery stores dust mop or wet mop their floors). Try it at your own risk, but if management decided to say no... remember they can ask someone not to return if they have to mention it more than once or twice. Notice: more stores are not posting No Bare Feet by order of Health Department but Shoes Required. Try it at your own risk, but if they deny entry or ask to leave... again they can ask not to return again. Return again anyway? They can call the police for trespassing or similar.

What about safety? What about it? I've had my share of barefoot injuries in a store, some so trivial that they didn't hurt, and some enough that I left the store with a bleeding toe to prevent too much of it from getting on the store floor. I'm talking about a bag at self-checkout half-breaking and spilling soup cans on my foot to the point they did ask if I was okay. I'm talking about banging my toe on a turnstile enough to crack the nail. I'm talking about slip and fall (well, almost) from recently polished floors such as in shopping malls where they buff the floors shiny periodically, not just mop them. One barefooter might accept responsibility but it only takes one to file a lawsuit. Remember, this isn't SBL or Barefoot Is Legal, this is the everyday barefooter. I'll get back to them later. Then, consider it might actually be insurance policy, to cover the costs if they do get sued. All that said, business has the right to ignore barefooters, confront them and ask them not to return next time barefoot, deny entry (and remember they can get a manager even if they are just a greeter or store clerk), or ask them not to return regardless of barefoot or shoes. I know how to walk around hardware stores and hardware warehouses barefoot (as I have seen others do it too) but there are sawdust, loose screw, wood splinter type of hazards on the floors in those aisles that have them.

I'll also present other lesser thought of risks. There have been incidents of metal plate shocks, when wet the shock extends past the plate. Fatal in a case in Vegas when a woman carrying her shoes was seriously shocked. I've also had my worries about escalators, even though I know how to step off of them when barefoot, because if there's ground fault then the stairs are metal whether running up the stairs or going back down the stairs and enough electrical shock would electrical burn the soles even if the shock didn't cause any long term harm.

So now let's get back to SBL and Barefoot Is Legal that will do more to affect even the casual barefooter. Ignoring or excessively challenging greeters: no bare feet, announcement over the PA about a barefooter vs. questing once or twice... and then getting the shoes (maybe next time the greeter won't be there, but be ready to turn back and get shoes). Ignoring managers: either confronted sooner or if not then they will constantly watch the barefooter to confront them before leaving; however, acknowledging managers and they will at least allow finishing shopping (yes, I have ignored excuse me sir and did not have a manager track me down), but as a regular customer to that store I don't want to give them reason to ask me never to return (so I will at least carry flip flops in a waistpack, show them I have them, but if they demand wearing shoes... wear the shoes). Mall security, see insurance policy, even though I have found it questionable about being confronted at outdoor mall when I didn't enter any mall stores... still their rules, their security, and they can ask never to return to the mall for non-compliance. Silly and stupid ways around it such as doctor's note to go barefoot (medical fraud?), reporting a disability and trying to claim no questions due to ADA (they can ask for ID if they get permission to make a policy), insisting that dirty soles are no less dirty than shoes when a shoe sole can be wiped clean but it takes scrubbing to fully clean all dirt from the soles (and even then too hot bakes dirt into the soles that can't even be scrubbed away that day)... it's their business, they own it or pay the lease, they make the rules... they just made sure it couldn't be legally challenged by not claiming it is a law.

Now then... more people use Facebook these days. SBL has their own page, even if one has to be a member to post. It's one thing to post foot selfies to prove they were there barefoot, and another thing to border on fetish when they start showing off soles or nailpolish, or tattoos that have no relevance to actually going barefoot. Dirty soles? I get them, in some cases sort of proof I did a barefoot day and lasted on extended hot asphalt walks... but I outgrew the phase where I would intentionally blacken them as much as possible for show, and if I do blacken them it is for a layer of protected dirt from extra hot (but it really doesn't do much since that dirt bakes into the sole as other dirt burns over it).

The main point? Barefoot is more of a problem because of those who want to make it a movement. A business might post Shoes Required By Law. What law? Ask? Okay so there is no law...but guess what... it's still store policy anyway. Write corporate? Congratulations, regardless of corporate response they just went on the radar as a problem barefooter. Doctor's note? Hasn't been done yet, but they could ask for the doctor information to call them. Slip and fall? Even if the barefooter accepts responsibility, it still happened.. if they can't identify the problem that would also affect a shoe wearer, the problem is the barefooter. I don't know of many who go to job interviews barefoot, unless it's someone who wore uncomfortable shoes and then it's the interviewer, not the one being interviewed, but even then in a couple of occurrences they mentioned it and acknowledged it wasn't an overall good business impression.

So that's that. I'm not saying I don't go barefoot in businesses until I am specifically told in person not too, and even then it might be location specific and another location might not care. I am saying if it has been brought to my attention, of a business, I respect it to the way I am being confronted about it. Again, it's more like a dirty face or dirty hands... and I have experience with particularly hot weather baking asphalt dirt into my soles, no amount of handwipes or washcloths will get it all out, and yet if I walk on a wet floor then I leave dirty footprints where I stepped. No way shoe soles absorb that much dirt even if it's a leather soled flip flop, because they don't have pores.

(Let me also comment on the barefoot sandals thing. It's not going to fool anyone. It's just arts and crafts foot jewelry. A one time look might make it look like shoes, but walk around the store longer, especially with dirty soles... and they'll definitely see it. It offers no long-term protection against extra hot or extra cold anyway. I haven't found any that look like a man's sandal anyway, so it's flip flops or else a completely bare foot.)

And that is that. Very long explanation, some will disagree, but in summary it is cleanliness, safety, and respect. The respectful barefooter does so when they can, wears shoes when they can't get away with it the next time, especially if they go there regularly. The disrespectful barefooter ruins it for the respectful ones, sooner or later.

 

Americans tend to be very opinionated and uptight about anything related to the fashion statement you project. Anything nonstandard makes many of them uncomfortable. I know some people who think it's rude for me to be barefoot inside my own house when I have guests. They think if it was okay, everybody would do it, not just some. Fortunately, most of my friends take off their shoes at the front door, just because they can.

 

Hi. Redneck gun-toting freedom-loving All-American male here. My perspective: I'm continually amazed that "barefooting" is a "thing." And that "aversion to barefooting" is a "thing."

Since I've been old enough to walk and dress myself on my own, I've been going barefoot. A lot. As in, if my feet weren't cold, I didn't put socks on. And if I didn't put socks on, I didn't put shoes on. Living in a warm climate, it was usually warm enough to go barefoot outside 9 or 10 months of the year. So, I did. In fact, when I was a kid, my parents actually encouraged me to go barefoot. We weren't particularly wealthy when I was a kid - so the less I wore my shoes, the less often they'd wear out and they'd have to buy me new ones. So parents weren't a problem.

Through high school, there's only two times when I can remember being forced to wear shoes - the first was for gym class (though probably 25% of the time or so we could get away with being in bare feet). The other was for Sunday church. Outside of those occasions, I'd only wear shoes if it was particularly cold outside.

Of my friends, probably at least half were barefoot at least as often as I was. It just wasn't a big deal. On occasions where shoes were "required," (like at school) a cheap pair of flip flops did the trick. They weren't super comfortable, but I preferred them over shoes and socks. My school had no problem with flip flops (except for in gym class). But even at stores and restaurants and stuff, I'd usually go barefoot. Usually, it was never an issue. As in, not even a comment about it. On the odd occasion when someone insisted that I could not go barefoot, I'd wear flip flops the next time.

Yes, people sometimes comment on the fact that I'm barefoot. But the number of times that someone in authority has told me that I had to put shoes on - those situations were and are quite rare. Both when I was a kid, and now that I'm an adult.

So that's why I find myself a little bemused that "barefooting" is a thing. I mean, I never really made a conscious decision to go barefoot - I just never put socks on. And most of my friends were the same way. The number of times when its been something I've actually put thought into... not until I realized that there are people out there who see it as a big deal.

 

So basically, it's all about who you ask about it, and where? With the hardcore crowds having the tendency to exaggerate the unfriendly attention they're getting?

 

Yeah I reckon so! I'm an American living in the UK, from California and a barefooter for years. As a child and teenager a casual barefooter and an adult full-time.

I absolutely mantain that certain 'barefooters' make a big deal of the whole thing, as opposed to the people who just don't wear shoes and stick them on when they must. It's a whole crazy paranoid mentality and I'm sure the anxious behaviour of some barefoot soldiers brings more attention than it otherwise would.

Sure there are people and places that might look down on your barefeet with distain, but we have a choice, ignore, avoid or compromise. Over here in the UK people are just not as outspoken as there are back home, back home people would comment more and point out the obvious, but it was never a big problem.

My advice is chill out, wear shoes or don't wear shoes. If a store doesn't let you enter, don't go there or go home and put on some kicks. Fuck some people just need to get a life!

Shayla x

 

What she said!

 

In the real world, reactions vary from place to place.

Online, I've found that no matter what you post, no matter what the subject, somebody is going to call you a liar.

 

Oh stop complaining and put some shoes on.

j/k

This message was paid for by the Terrapin's "Start a war in the barefoot community" Foundation.

 

terra u r such a bum!!!

 

Pretty much. I think there's a lot of people who you might classify as "barefooters" who don't even know that they are "barefooters" simply because no one has ever made a big deal about it to them. I mean, I never considered myself a barefooter or anything special (I found this website accidentally while searching for something completely unrelated) - after all, its more work to put socks on than it is to go barefoot.

I think there may be a little bit of a cultural, or more likely a geographical influence, though. Like I said before, I grew up in the southern US, where its pretty warm year round. We went barefoot because it was too damn hot to wear socks and shoes everywhere. My family briefly lived in the northern US, and going barefoot was definitely less common up there where it was colder. Even in the warm weather, it seemed like people were less inclined to go barefoot. On a wider scale - I've spent a little time in Europe, and it definitely seems like barefooting in public is less common in the northern European countries where the weather tends to be a little cooler and wetter. On the other hand, people of Asian and Caribbean descent seem much more comfortable going barefoot or in flip flops. So, yes, there probably at least a little cultural influence there.

But still - there's hardly a war on it, not anywhere I've ever experienced.

 

Geography probably has a lot to do with it actually. I live in canada and barefooting is very uncommon, which probably has something to do with the fact that it is cold half the year. Possibly countries where the ground is unsafe because of poisonous bugs or something it's the same.

 

that could not be farther from the truth






i think the general thinking of average nike guy is that even the cavemen were happy shoes were invented.....too bad you cant pass an interview to get a management job showing up barefoot and change these rules at walmart and disneyland

 

Of course they would be happy. I can't imagine trying to get through winter without owning any. Not fun.

I prefer to use my own judgment about what to wear, when, and where.

 

Also, keep your head up and your feet down. Several stores, sign or no sign, where I have been barefoot but also didn't have to ask store staff where items were located. Always look ahead where you are going, never look directly down at the feet, and certainly do not check the soles whether clean or really dirty and blackened. Use of a shopping cart makes this the easiest, but there have been times I just use the carrying basket, and if there were only a couple of items I was getting then nothing to carry the items and just hold them in my hands. If all I was going to get were a couple of bottles of soda, by the time they would otherwise bring up no bare feet, I am ready to go to the checkout counter anyway and some stores even have self-checkout.

"Oh stop complaining and put some shoes on. "

Yep. LOL my "shoes" are gradually becoming my increasingly heat-proofed roughened callused soles, flip flops would be considered as business casual, walking shoes would be considered as business formal, and dress shoes would only be with something like a formal tuxedo. In the IT area this can be more common; however, they do favor cleaned soles than those that are dirty or even stained dirty.

 

Yeah I normally know what I'm going into the store for before I go in, so I don't ever spend much time in a store. I've found that helps with the barefooting cause. If a manager complains and you've already got the thing you were looking for, most of the time they don't mind if you pay on the way out.

 

I was in a small neighborhood market barefoot. Nobody ever said nothing, until the grouchy ancient checkout woman demanded to know "why did you come in here barefooted?"
"Because I did," says I. (Ha!)
She took my money, and I left.
I've been in the store barefoot since then.
Old grouch!

 

Yes, in fact go to the public SBL page on Facebook (you'll need to be logged into Facebook) and that's where the mentions of challenging managers to the point of making them show an insurance policy if they claim one (but they forget they can just be banned since it's a private business), or ignoring greeters (fair enough and I've done that to a point, but don't ignore the supervisor or manager because they can be banned from the business), getting a doctor's note claiming a condition requires they go barefoot (medical fraud on the part of the barefooter and the doctor)... I've mentioned it before, I'll mention it again.

Obviously if I drove, the flip flops are in the car, so I can go get them if one challenge is still a no shoes/no entry. The couple of times I was confronted by managers, one in a more upset tone and one in a more mellow tone, they still let me finish shopping. Plus, if a store is diligent in mopping, not just dust mopping, I'll consider just how dirty my soles are if they were to walk on their cleaner floor... flip flops if they are coated enough to leave wet foot prints if they get wet.

Transit? Flip flops are in the waistpack. The one year I didn't I ended up with a good sized heel blister that burst when I was shopping in the store and they even announced over the PA there was a man with a blister in the store. Thankfully, I didn't blood blister on their floor, but that is the kind of blister that got big enough to burst. Of course, that was also after a half mile or so on darker colored sidewalk in 100 degrees F weather and with humidity... with soles still getting used to that level of heat for that long of a distance... and I forgot a barefooter's first aid kit for better draining of it.

(Ideally, I would prefer the thinner men's shower shoe type of flip flop over the usual half inch thick ones... better feeling of the surface being walked on for immediate feedback to the soles when not barefoot, but they only have the hard rubber strap and hard rubber knob in between the toes... instead of the fabric strap like the thicker ones do. Shower shoe type would be easier to put in a waistpack and still have room in that pocket for other items. Men's shower shoe type with a fabric strap would be perfect.)