TOMS: Shoes That Fight Back

Part of being a good person requires that we care for the broken world around us. Spare change for the guy on the street corner, picking up the abandoned trash on the beach, recognizing that we have a job to do. This comes with a price. TOMS shoes is a company that builds simple canvas shoes and when you purchase a pair, a second pair is delivered to a person in need in a developing part of the world.

I own TOMS and wear them frequently. I like knowing that someone else in the world is wearing the same pair, kind of like one of those broken-heart necklaces, without the heart, necklace, or cheesy inscription.

As I said earlier, there is always a catch. My first day wearing them yielded some strange looks and off-color remarks, the best was when somebody said, “you look like a gay ninja.” Is this the price for caring for the world? A gay ninja? I have never even heard of a gay ninja. I picture Perez Hilton in a leotard with a screen pressed unicorn, throwing purple smoke bombs and swatting at people with rainbow colored nunchucks.

Nonetheless, I have done something. I have looked at the world and seen that not all is right. There is brokenness all around. Buying shoes will not end poverty, feed the homeless, or father the orphans, but it is a small step in recognizing that everyone can help. Besides, who said there is anything wrong with a gay ninja?