The Shoes That Could Help You Fly
In the early 90s, I was in middle school on the edge of becoming a freshman at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. At this time in my youth, all that I was concerned about was my latest crush and earning a spot on the school’s basketball team. In the years surrounding this period basketball was an important part of my life. I dreamed about playing pro basketball. I spent most of my free time either thinking about or playing basketball. My favorite part of the year was October when the NBA started its season. In the early 90s, Michael Jordan was at the prime of his professional career. The Gatorade slogan “If I could be like Mike,” was always fresh in my mind. Jordan was the best player the NBA had ever seen. Watching him on the basketball court was a magical and religious experience for me at that time.
There was one thing that was more exciting than the beginning of a new NBA season, it was the release of the newest pair of Nike’s Air Jordans. This shoe was not just a basketball shoe. There was something special about it. Back then, my teenage mind really believed that some of the skill that Jordan possessed could be acquired by simply wearing his shoes.
My obsession with Air Jordans reminds me of Marx’s ideas about fetishism that capitalist society places on objects. There was no scientific reason for my beliefs about the powers of Air Jordans. But, when they were on my feet a felt like I could jump higher and I could shoot straighter. The magic of Jordan’s shoes came at a steep price and because of the $125 price tag I only owned one pair of them.
Thinking back on my own fanatical desire for these shoes reminds me of our readings and discussions on Marx’s theories on the Mystical Aspects of Commodities. At the time, Air Jordans were one of the most expensive athletic shoes you could buy. Essential, Air Jordans are nothing but rubber stitched together with other materials. The cost of producing them was under $10. When I strapped on a pair of Jordans, they did not make me jump higher or drive to the basket faster. The use-value of Air Jordans was no different than any other basketball shoe.
The symbolic value of Air Jordans was almost unmeasurable. People noticed them when you walked through the school hallways. When you stepped on the court with these shoes your credibility as a basketball player increased. On and off the court, Air Jordans became equated with respect.
Baudrillard ideas about Scale of Status remind me of another side effect of the Air Jordan phenomenon. Jordans became apart of the uniform that became identified with African American youth culture. Air Jordans became one of the many pairs of footwear people used to identify with being young, urban, and hip. A pair of new Jordans was also a signal to everyone else that you had money to pay for them.
Unfortunately, Air Jordan also inspired jealousy in people who could not afford them. When I was in middle school, I remember a TV news reports about a kid killing another teenager over a pair of Jordans in Washington DC. The thought that in somebody’s mind a life could worth less than a pair of shoes that cost less then $10 to make is very sad. A brief google search lead me to this article about a similar shooting death in Chicago in 2005.