People are continually harassed, usually playfully, over having a lame pair of sneakers, but sometimes that bullying can turn into something serious.
According to the Star-Telegram, Adam Flowers, 9, of Macon, Ga., was bullied by teenagers for days about his torn-up shoes, his grandmother, Carolyn Taylor, said. Flowers had been wearing a pair of tennis shoes that had its sole separating, a pair that he had owned for 2 years.
Flowers was taunted with chants of "What are those?" and was being picked on because of his old sneakers. The bullying hits its climax when a 16-year-old girl put Flowers in a headlock in front of the apartment he lives in with his grandmother. Taylor saw the altercation and called the police.
Responding officer Trinicholas Carswell made a visit to the teen's home to talk to her parents about her actions. Carswell later came back to Flower's apartment where he asked Flowers his shoe size.
"I want to buy him some shoes. ... He needs some shoes, doesn't he?" Carswell said. A couple of hours later, Carswell, along with two other deputies, returned with a new pair of Jordan Flight 23s for Flowers.
Flowers was floored with excitement."He saw the shoes and it was just pandemonium after that," Taylor said. He even wore the shoes to bed, Taylor said. With all the negative light that has been put on cops and sneaker culture, it is refreshing to see a positive story to come from something like this.
