Lovely Laughter

Originally uploaded by mongoliandeathworm

We crimson-topped folk have suffered over 800 years of discrimination all because of our golden locks. For hundreds of years literary references warn against the unlucky and/or evil nature of people with red hair. The Proverbs of Alfred warned as early as the 1200′s that ‘the red man is a wicked man, for he will give thee evil counsel’. Throughout the decades red-haired men and women were thought to be poisonous, treacherous, bad luck, unhappy, unlucky to meet in the morning, before a journey on foot or upon a ship, and even for the fishermen. It was even thought that if a redheaded child or person visited on New Year’s Day that someone would die within that house by year’s end.

Tsk. So much fear of the unknown.

The way I see it redheads are indeed very lucky. We thrive despite the unlikely recessive genes needed to bring forth our fiery locks. We need less anesthesia during surgery and dental procedures. We are resilient evolutionarily, physically–despite our sensitivities, emotionally for most of us have endured some sort of taunting on account of hair color, alabaster skin or quirky freckles.

Seems to me despite what the masses once thought or may still believe–we are the lucky ones, fortunate to be of strong unique heritages and beautifully rare form. We are unique and ordinary, strong and sensitive all at the same time. We are the lucky ones born of parents of all hair colors, surviving despite the evolutionary unlikelihood, thriving despite the centuries of popular contempt against us.

From: RED HAIR unlucky by IONA OPIE and MOIRA TATEM
Source: A Dictionary of Superstitions, 1/1/1996.
Via: HighBeam™ Research
© A Dictionary of Superstitions 1996, originally published by Oxford University Press 1996.

I was called ‘the ugly one’. A lot of girls go through an awful time growing up, thinking they’re too fat, too thin, have a nose that’s too big or legs too short.I did all that surrounded by four of the most gorgeous girls in the country. My thing was my white skin and red hair. I hated it and hated myself.

At 16, comments like this coupled with constant comparisons to her average haired band mates eroded away at her self-esteem, distorting her self-image.

Flash forward some many years and through an inspiring romance with fashion Nicola Roberts has reclaimed those words, “red hair and white skin” and finds she is much more comfortable in her own skin. In an interview recently she gave credit to her first fashion party for her long-awaited self-acceptance. It was at that party that it dawned on her that it is not only OK to be different but that she could be beautiful as well. Redefining those same words that haunted her for years, she declared,

‘The fact I have white skin and red hair is my thing. It’s my different thing and in the fashion world, that’s OK.’

Congratulations Nicola! You are beautiful in every way! Stand tall and show the world what you are made of—fierce freckles, tall-standing alabaster core and a fiery intellect cap!

Pssst…You are the beautiful one.

Did anyone else notice how the man giving the interview was trying to ‘play it down’, minimize it? He was inferring that it cannot be that bad now as an adult. He glided over the story the woman told about how a group of boys pinned her down to try to check if her pubic hair matched the hair on her head. That is horrendous! No one should have to go through such an experience. And certainly if she is willing to share this story to bring light to the subject, the man giving the interview shouldn’t try to downplay it. Obviously this woman and that family were not referring to the jabs or jokes made in friendly jest by friends or family. They were referring to real harassment, real discrimination, real offensive behavior towards them because of the color of their hair. This is unacceptable.

Would the interviewer have been so easily dismissive if this was a case of race discrimination? I think not.

There is another video on this debate in the UK.

What do you think? Should there be laws against bullying? Offensive comments? Harassment? What is a harmless joke and when does that go too far?

Shocked, offended, slightly embarrassed and then agitated. If you have to ask, you will probably never find out.