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Cannes Turned Away Woman With Partially Amputated Foot For Wearing Flats

by Adam Pliskin

Yesterday, we told you about some controversy that was brewing at the Cannes Film Festival.

A number of women reported being denied entry to screenings for not wearing high heels. Understandably, many found this dress code to be sexist and discriminatory.

If people had issues with these policies before, the newest addition to this story will really infuriate them.

Apparently, a film producer named Valeria Richter was turned away on the red carpet for not sporting high heels.

What makes this particularly egregious is Richter is physically unable to wear heels because part of her left foot has been amputated.

Richter says she was stopped four times on the way into a screening of Gus Van Sant's "Sea of Trees."

She said,

They pointed their finger at my shoe and then were waving their fingers at me. It was quite obvious it was my shoes that was an issue. Obviously, I could wave my foot at them and that would make the situation a little awkward for them, because I had a visible explanation [for not wearing heels].

Eventually, Richter was allowed into the theater, but not before the damage was done.

What's more, many of her female colleagues were not granted entry due to their style choices.

Citations: Cannes turned away amputee in flat shoes (BBC)