Med Student Responds To Woman Saying Adults Who Wear Backpacks To Work Are ‘Not Doing Good’
Backpacks are always in fashion.
Ann Haritonenko / Shutterstock The clothes we wear represent more than just fabric that covers our bodies. Some people dress to express themselves. Others dress solely for comfort. Either way, our style is a reflection of our innermost selves.
Some fashion choices are just practical, like carrying a wallet or purse to hold our belongings as we move about the world, a seemingly innocuous decision that one woman sees as a deciding factor of someone’s status in the world.
A doctor responded to a woman who said that adults who wear backpacks to work are ‘not doing good.’
A comedian named Keren Margolis had fighting words for certain people’s style choices, saying, “This is no shade, but if you’re an adult wearing a backpack, you’re not doing good,” a statement that certainly sounded a little bit like shade.
Looking past her grammatical error, her hot take on backpacks seems to center around aesthetics and not the fact that the people who wear them in fact, might be doing very well for themselves.
“I’m sure you’re hustling, I’m sure you’re on your grind, but you’re not, like, crushing it,” she said, which is a judgment call that no one but the person wearing the backpack can really make.
She dug herself in deeper, noting that “Nobody sees an adult with all their belongings strapped to their body and goes, ‘Yeah, that’s the sign of extreme wealth.’
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The fact that she views money as the pinnacle of “doing good” offers insight into her larger worldview. Rather than prioritizing friendships or professional satisfaction or just how happy a person is, overall, Margolis appears to base her sense of fulfillment on social class and status, which often proves itself to be more hollow than not.
Yet brave backpack wearers worldwide spoke back to Margolis, including a dental student who’s clearly working hard to reach successful heights as a healthcare provider.
The dental student showed off his sleek black backpack, noting, “I was told I was a ‘Healthcare hero.’”
Other healthcare workers shared that they, too, wear backpacks, viewing them as a necessary accessory for their busy lives.
“If you’re an adult judging people wearing backpacks, you’re not doing good,” one person pithily noted.
“Heroes don’t only wear capes, they wear backpacks, too,” someone else said.
Even more people threw their weight behind the pro-backpack cause, including self-proclaimed “data nerd” Brian Xu, who noted that “55% of U.S. professionals say they prefer using a backpack for work.”
“If doing good is defined as being in the top 50%, there must be adults wearing backpacks that are doing good,” he continued.
Xu shared a compilation of famous, wealthy people who wear backpacks, including Michelle Obama and Bill Gates.
Medically speaking, using a backpack is better than using a purse because the weight of whatever we’re carrying gets spread evenly onto our backs because the weight of whatever we’re carrying gets spread evenly onto our backs, instead of just one shoulder.
When we wear a backpack, we support the weight with our abdominal and back muscles, which are the strongest parts of our bodies.
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There’s a long and storied history of using backpacks for physical training, a practice known as “Rucking,” which originated in the military.
Rucking involves carrying a weighted backpack while walking, and it boosts endurance, muscle strength, and overall health while also being easier on people’s joints than running.
Rucking has been shown to improve cardiovascular function while increasing the calories burned compared to a non-backpacked walk.
Whatever bag a person carries their effects in doesn’t indicate their worth. Rather, it shows they pay attention to the health and wealth of their physical being, which is the ultimate indicator of status.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers social issues, pop culture, and all things to do with the entertainment industry.