On May 13th, 2016, Nicola Thorp, a receptionist in a corporate finance company, was sent home from work after refusing to wear high heels. Yep, you heard right SENT HOME. IN 2016.

Employed as a temp at PwC, Nicola was told in December to only “wear shoes with 2- to 6-inch heel.” After telling the temporary services agency that hired her that the demand was discriminatory, she was sent home without pay.

Thorp told BBC Radio London: “I said, ‘If you can give me a reason as to why wearing flats would impair me to do my job today, then fair enough’, but they couldn’t. I was expected to do a nine-hour shift on my feet escorting clients to meeting rooms. I said I just won’t be able to do that in heels.”

Nicola Thorp

Today women around the world stood in solidarity with this sexist footware policy, taking the fight to social media with #FawcettFlatsFriday campaign started by the womens’ rights and equality group, The Fawcett Society.

UK politicians including Labour MP Stella Creasy and Women’s Equality party founder Catherine Mayer posted their solidarity on Twitter. But this type of shoe sexism isn’t just limited to the workplace. The famed Cannes film festival has reportedly been known to deny access to women not wearing high heels. Luckily Julia Roberts was up to this year’s challenge.

Promoting her new film, Money Monster, Julia kicked off her shoes and ascended the festival’s staircase, giving a big, giant, A-list middle finger to Cannes stodgy dress code of high heels only.

Show support for disassembling discriminatory dress codes. Tweet a photo of your flats with the hashtag #FawcettFlatsFriday and add @DotComplicated in support!

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