BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Etiquette Flips Flops at the White House

I saw this story on CNN today, seems it was a topic on the Today Show on Monday (I watch GMA). Anyway this women's lacrosse team met with the President. Seems one of the girl's brothers saw a photo with several of the girls in the front wearing flip flops and his letter made it to a Chicago newspaper front page.

Here is the CNN version.

I am a cable news junkie and surprised that today was the first I had heard of this incident. CNN had a reporter at some high end shoe store in NY showing shoppers the photo and asking them what they thought about wearing flip flops to the White House.

I personally think it is in bad taste to wear flip flops to the White House. Any other opinions?

I have to agree with you. - Although, they seem to be so fashionable right now that everyone is wearing them.

I think proper respect should be shown to the president and to the nation's capitol. Casual dress and behavior is becoming so common place - even at weddings and funerals.

I've never understood the people who wear flipflops everywhere, especially to formal events. I've seen girls who are dressed very nicely...then you look at their feet and they're wearing flip-flops. I've even seen fancy flipflops on the pages of bridal-shoe catalogs!!

It was a bit more understandable in the case of a former fellow choirmember I knew...I'm pretty sure she always wore flipflops with her choir dress because she WAS on the rather-overweight side with wide feet and I know dress shoes are usually pretty narrow.

But for most people I don't think there's any excuse. Frankly, I think flip-flops are almost hanging over the line of tackiness and I wouldn't wear them most places that aren't the beach anyway...but definitely not anywhere dressy or where I needed to impress someone.

I'd initially thought that it might have been a photo opportunity, but after reading the article I'm mortified to find that these college-aged women actually thought that their flip-flops would go over well.
How could they think that no one would notice that a team which represents one of the finer institutions of higher learning in our country, doesn't know enough to NOT wear flip-flops.

I just think it had to be a prank. They new enough to wear business casual clothing, and I don't see anyone in jeans and a t-shirt so I believe they knew enough to know what should be worn at the White House. They just chose to break the rules with the shoes.
I'd imagine it was in order to sell the shoes on E-Bay!

But I do have one question: Where was the coach? I mean they couldn't have gone their without a coach, right? If the coach was there, why didn't he/she stop them?

Aren't we making just a bit of too big of a deal about the womens lacrosse teams foot wear? I mean seriously, if that's what you have time to do in life...
It's the womens lacrosse team, would you have rathered they wore cross trainers?
Personally, I haven't seen the photo I'm unaware as to what else they were wearing. But as an owner of a multitude of flip flops as well as dress shoes and having to wear 12W womens shoes. Id have to say that I probably would have worn flip flops as well. They are comfortable, better for your feet and I always look nice when I leave the house regardless of my footwear.
Yes the shoes make the man, but come on, I'm going to step out on a limb here and say that the ladies were probably more worried about saying something stupid than whether their flip flops were appropriate or not.

Wendy

I just looked @ the photo. These girls aren't wearing Spongebob Squarepants beach flip-flops! They are wearing the "dress" version, which is more akin to sandals. Some have straps, some have little heels on them, some or beaded with rhinestones or other gems - it would be more appropriate to call them thongs (except then people think of underwear!)
These shoes seem approrpiate to what they are wearing. Also, as for selling them on E-bay, they are trying to raise money for a little gril w/ Leukemia. So , yea, they may HAVE been trying for a little more media! I don't think even the President would be upset w/ them for trying to help a child w/ cancer.

In the grand scheme of things, this is being blow out of proportion in the since that there is more going on in the world than who's wearing what shoes.

While, I do think that the idea to use the shoe to raise money for leukemia is a great one, the bottom line is that they were in fact ill-dressed to meet the president.

When meeting anyone at the White House, you are meeting them at their office, and I don't know of too many offices that would allow you to wear flip-flops or thongs. If you were going to a meeting with Donald Trump, you wouldn't wear flip-flops. You would wear business attire.

So should they be flogged and sent to jail... Of course not! But I do think that this bears mentioning because many in our society no longer place an emphasis on attire. Which, although is not the end of the world, leads to etiquette mistakes made solely out of ignorance... like teenagers who show up for their first interview in jeans.

I'm hoping that they did in fact have on other shoes and simply switched for the picture. Or in the very least, called an official before arriving to let them know what they would be doing, just on the chance that they may offend someone.

And let us remember, we're not condemning them as though they are morally wrong, but they did cross an etiquette barrier here. And we welcome all comments about etiquette here at the forum.

Ok, I'm curious... Flip-flops are better for your feet than what? No shoes? I personally find flip-flops to be dangerous shoes. Those are the "shoes" I tend to have the most accidents in. People step on the backs of them, I've fallen down stairs wearing them, twisted my ankles, they fall off my feet while driving, they have zero support for my feet, etc. Yeah, I still wear them as a quick shoe to put on because I'm too lazy to put on a pair of better shoes. I don't wear them to church or an 'event'. They are for around the house, the backyard, the grocery store.

This is all my opinion, of course - oh & experience. I'd rather wear no shoes <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> but they won't let me in a store without my shoes. So I tend to wear a pair of Easy Spirit sandals with good support or a pair of cross trainers.

BTW, I'm a size 10 foot <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I know what you mean - I've had a lot of accidents in them myself. But they're definitely comfortable!!!

I would have probably not worn them to the WH though..or I hope I wouldn't have...

<img src="/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif" alt="" /> Hmmmmm, I'm curious. In Hawaii it is considered polite to take off one's shoes when entering someone's house. (My ex-husband was stationed there). If the White House were in Honolulu, then the girls would have gone in to the President barefoot, right?

Hmmmmmmm