yellow shoe

So this morning myself and some fellow health promotioners walked/ran (ok only Brian ran) the San Diego AIDS walk/run. It was really fun and interesting and surprisingly my legs hurt (yes from walking a 5k), but something stood out at the walk, that one of my fellow team mates pointed out. All of the print materials and signs had big yellow shoes on them. They were pretty weird looking and when looking at a shirt from the walk the year before they had the same ugly yellow shoe. I mean, I know it is a walk/run, and yes we wear shoes to walk and run, but why have a shoe as the symbol that you put on everything that says the San Diego AIDS walk/run on it? This yellow shoe made me wonder, first: who is their population they are trying to target with this yellow shoe; second: did they actually put time and money into figuring out if their population really loves this yellow shoe; and third: how do they think a yellow shoe will make people think of raising money for AIDS research. Big yellow shoe seen here:

http://www.miketidmus.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/yellow_shoe_425.jpg

So if I was their population, they would have failed. I am more confused with the yellow shoe than inspired to help with the fight against AIDS. I mean yes; shoes can mean walking/running, which can mean fitness and health which is an outcome of finding a cure for HIV/AIDS, but it seems like a long trail to get from the shoe to AIDS. I mean I felt as though the population that was participating in the walk/run was very diverse, which is probably a hurdle that many health communication professionals deal with on a daily basis........but a shoe? I felt as though the symbol of the AIDS walk/run should have something to do with helping find a cure for AIDS. Maybe I am being too critical because I don't know if I could come up with a better idea. I suppose HIV/AIDS is a hard concept to capture completely, and I guess they are making an effort to be more creative than just the red ribbon. Although, I feel as like more time and effort should go into the materials designing of the San Diego AIDS walk/run. I know budgets and time are not unlimited, but I feel as though the yellow shoe is a poor choice for representing such a great event. Who knows, maybe whoever their target audience is loves the shoe, so they did a great job. This class makes me more critical of communication every week, I blame Sheila, just kidding :).