Editorial
Front Page - Friday, June 11, 2010
What'll they dream up next?
Nike Air Native N7 shoes
Misty S. Brown
The Nike Air Native N7 shoe line is specifically designed with the Native American foot in mind. It features a wider and taller toe box and design elements borrowed from Native American culture, including feathers on the insole, multi-colored ribbons to represent the sunrise to sunset and stars on the sole to represent the starry night sky. The Nike N7 line is made with the Iroquois philosophy of the seventh generation – we must consider how our actions today will impact our posterity in seven generations.
- Misty S. Brown
A clown in central Arkansas once told me I have duck feet. No, my ten toes are not webbed, nor are my feet scaly and orange. It was probably because he found out I hailed from Oregon, where it rains constantly and the University of Oregon Ducks are one of the favorite mascots there.
Since that clever little gibe, I have been mildly self-conscious of my feet. I never really put much thought into the way my feet looked differently from others’ feet until then.
My feet are like most of my family’s feet. They are actually shaped a bit like a duck’s — narrow at the back and much wider at the front. I had a friend in high school tell me my feet looked fake — a good thing, according to her, but I was not sure how to take it.
In the right kind of shoe, my feet look and feel fine, but it takes a lot of trying on to find the right kind of shoe. For one, I hate toe cleavage and my longer-than-average toes make it difficult to find ones that cover up all the cleavage past the toe strap. I also have wide feet at the toes, so those pointed- and peep-toed shoes wreak havoc on my poor dogs. I have a tall foot too, so I always need a size bigger to fit comfortably and then I look ridiculous with a shoe that’s a little too long for my foot, not to mention the extra length contributes to my clumsiness.
Until recently, I just dealt with my tennis shoes that made my toes fall asleep during exercise. That is, until my mom, who lives and works on Native American land, gave me her barely-worn pair of Nike Air Native N7 shoes that she received through one of the Coquille tribe’s health and fitness programs.
What it is
Nike Air Native N7 shoes are designed to fit the specific fit and width requirements of the Native American foot.
Nike, after a couple of years of collaborative research with more than 70 tribes, podiatrists and the National Indian Health Board, determined that the feet of Native Americans tend to be wider in the toes and taller in the arch than the average foot. Since Native Americans are prone to health problems such as diabetes, it is Nike’s hope that better-fitting shoes will help keep Native Americans healthy through exercise.
“Nike is aware of the growing health issues facing Native Americans,” Sam McCracken, Manager of Nike’s Native American Business program, is quoted on the Nikebiz.com website as saying. “Through the Nike Air Native N7 we are stepping up our commitment to use our voice on a local, regional and national level to elevate the issue of Native American health and wellness. We believe physical activity can and should be a fundamental part of the health and wellness of all Native Americans.”
In addition to a wider and larger toe box, fewer seams and a thicker sock liner for comfort, the Nike Air Native N7 shoes feature design elements taken from Native American culture. The insole has feathers and the N7 logo, which stands for an Iroquois philosophy of the seventh generation.
According to the philosophy, one must look at the impact one’s decisions today will make on a person in seven generations. It also encompasses the idea that we are in the middle of the seven generations and must look back three generations for wisdom and three ahead for our legacy. The tongue and heel of the shoes have a multi-colored ribbon of fabric to represent the sunrise to sunset. The stars on the sole of the shoes represent the starry night sky.
Pros and cons
The concept of a shoe made specifically for Native Americans is great and many people can benefit from it, as I already have, but what about people of different ethnicities with other foot-shape issues?
The Native American influences on the design works great on the women’s white and teal or tan and teal version of the shoe, but does not look as nice on the solid black or brown men’s version.
The shoes I own have a stiff sole and are probably best for walking instead of running.
The insoles of these shoes have a space for a Nike+ accelerometer sensor to link with an iPod or iPhone and track your pace, distance and calories burned. Although this is something I have not heard of until now, I think it is a pretty interesting concept.
These specific shoes are not widely available to consumers unless they are associated with a tribe or organization that has partnered with Nike. According to Nikebiz.com’s website, “The Nike Air Native N7 will only be available through Nike’s Native Business Program as an additional way for Native American communities to provide Nike product incentives at preferential prices to their members through health promotion and disease prevention programs.”
There are other shoes in the N7 line available via the nikestore.com website, but these are not necessarily designed with the Native American foot in mind. Instead, these shoes are made with the seventh generation philosophy by using recyclable and recycled materials in their construction for a lower environmental impact.
Additionally, profits from the sale of the Nike Air Native shoes go toward the Let Me Play programs on Native American lands that use sports as a way to promote an active and healthy lifestyle.
Where to buy
While finding the Nike Air Native N7 shoes might be difficult unless you are associated with a tribe, the other shoes in the N7 line are available at nikestore.com with prices ranging from $27.97 to $85. To find out about how you can obtain the Nike Air Native N7 shoes, visit N7fund.com or e-mail N7.Fund@nike.com.
Submissions
Have a new item or product you would like me to review?
Send me an e-mail at misty@
dailydata.com.
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