Julie Bishop reminded us of his iconic red shoe moment this International Women’s Dayand all power to her.
Bishop reposted a photo of the sensational red satin, diamond-studded heels on Instagram, which she wore on the day she resigned as Foreign Minister of Australia’s parliament.
“‘No nation can reach its full potential unless and until it embraces the skills, talent, energy and ideas of all of its people and that must include the 50% women'”, said she captioned the post, along with a red shoe emoji.
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The quote is from a keynote speech she gave at the Global Women’s Summit 2018. During her speech, Bishop stressed the importance of fighting for gender equality.
But the shoe moment itself dates back to a sad press conference in August 2018, which took place the same week that Malcolm Turnbull lost the leadership of the Liberal government.
During the conference, Bishop stood there, her “power shoes” saying everything that needed to be said. Iconic photos were taken of the moment, with Bishop being praised for making a proud feminist statement – despite repeatedly denying being a feminist over the years.
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Always detail-oriented, Bishop also painted her nails red, while she wore a contrasting dark navy coat and dress. However, there was more than just contrast in her outfit. Standing against a backdrop of journalists and politicians in dark suits, Bishop’s bright red shoes stood out a mile away.
In a later interview with The Sydney Morning HeraldBishop explained her thoughts behind the outfit.
“When in doubt, wear red,” she said in an exclusive interview.
“Red is one of my favorite colors. It connotes power, passion and fashion. In power I have always noticed that many nations have red in their flags and that is because it symbolizes courage and freedom. Passion, well, you know, red hearts, red roses. And fashion – that’s why they call it a red carpet – and red lipstick, red nail polish, the Red Shoes.”
Bishop then donated the Museum of Australian Democracy, as the museum is housed in the Old Houses of Parliament.
At the time, she tweeted saying she hoped the act might inspire other women to enter public life.
“If by offering my 👠to [the Museum of Australian Democracy] I inspire a woman to aspire to enter public life, to aspire to be Foreign Minister or Prime Minister, this gift was worth it,” the tweet read.
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