Jill Porter: Men in black (pumps, that is) for a good cause

LOOK! Men in high heels!

I assume I've got your attention, because what could be more curious than guys with hairy legs and heavy socks in four-inch patent-leather pumps?

We're not talking cross-dressing here, and the three future doctors who are clumsily wobbling across the medical-school lobby in women's shoes aren't making good on a bet.

They're practicing for tomorrow, when they'll join classmates at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine to walk a mile up City Avenue - to heighten awareness of sexual violence. They're calling it "Let's Get Ready to Stumble."

That name and the idea came from James Aston, 31 - the tall one in the size-14 black patent pumps - who read online about "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes: The International Men's March to Stop Rape, Sexual Assault & Gender Violence."

The organization sponsors men-in-heels walks across the country so men can "appreciate women's experiences, thus changing perspectives, helping improve gender relationships and decreasing the potential for violence," according to the Web site.

The event has never been held in Philadelphia.

"I wanted to do some kind of community service," Aston said. "It seemed a good way to bring awareness to something that happens on a daily basis."

He pitched the idea to Julia Cheringal, who heads the college's student chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility, and she loved it.

Cheringal is expecting about 40 students and a few professors to join in tomorrow's walk, which begins at 10 a.m. Some of them will be women - wearing sneakers, no doubt.

Proceeds from the fundraisers will be donated to the Laurel House, a domestic-violence agency in Montgomery County.

"You look very hot!" Cheringal teased as Aston, Ryan Schreiter and Collin McLaughlin teetered across the lobby of Evans Hall, on the City Avenue campus.

"It's heels first, gentlemen," she instructed, laughing.

"Your two cents are not needed now," Schreiter kidded as he turned up his cuffs to better display his argyle socks and red patent pumps.

But when we sat down to talk about the event, the conversation turned appropriately serious.

"I've personally known friends and family who've all experienced sexual violence," Aston said.

"I dated a girl who was raped by her mother's boyfriend when she was a young teen, along with her sister and brother.

"She went through a serious depression," he said. "She was still struggling with it 10, 15 years later, when I dated her.

"My wife has a couple of cousins who were molested by a brother-in-law. It destroyed their lives."

Every two minutes someone in America is raped, according to advocacy organizations. One in every six American women will become a victim of sexual assault.

"If we can help someone from going through an abusive encounter, it's worth walking a mile in her shoes," Schreiter said.

The four second-year students also agreed that it's urgent for physicians to recognize that some patients' symptoms may be masking the trauma of sexual violence.

"I think it's important to recognize the signs and not be scared of talking about it," Cheringal said.

Walk a Mile in Her Shoes provides the boat-sized footwear for $20 a pair. Cheringal said they'll keep the shoes with the intention of making this an annual event.

Putting them on was a real eye-opener.

"I have no idea why anyone would want to put themselves through such torture," Aston said, slipping the pumps off while we talked.

Honestly, if there's anything more gratifying than men wearing high heels, it's men who are willing to look ridiculous for a great cause.

So if you see some guys stumbling up City Avenue in patent- leather pumps tomorrow, feel free to whistle - they're expecting it - but please pause to appreciate the seriousness of their stunt.

You go, girls! *

E-mail porterj@phillynews.com or call 215-854-5850. For recent columns:

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