What do we think of ‘gingerism’?

Tell me where I said that such behaviour is OK.

People can control their weight, for the most part. That doesn't make it right for a bully to pick on the fat kid at school just because "they can change." How about not picking on anyone? Regardless of whether they can change or not.

Anybody can say anything freedom of speech but that comes with freedom of consequence I know quite a few redheads or gingers who have more than enough we bottle to put anybody on their ass physically or verbally

I'm ginger and my eldest son is too (7YO)

I was bullied now and again at school for it (humiliating pube jokes being the utter worst thing when you're a shy, embarrassed teen girl), and even now (at 35) still get the occasional random person in the supermarket may a 'joke' directly to me about my hair colour. Lots of 'jokes' about not being able to go out in the sun... which is ridiculous as my skin colouring is actually quite olive based. Just as brunettes are not all dark-skinned, gingers can have different skin tones too.... I know, its shocking right. Almost as though we are each different people!

DS yet to face comments - or at least hasn't mentioned it to me. I don't doubt that he'll get some stick at secondary school though.

It seems that people think its just totally acceptable to make jokes out of it. Do they not realise that its part of my body, and I might not think its funny? Do they think its OK to make me feel self-conscious and embarrassed?

I also have had "oh I bet you hope they inherit DH's hair" when pregnant. Even from some close family members!

I've never understood it at all. It's not just rude but incomprehensible. Red/ginger hair is beautiful. What is there to ridicule about it?
When people start going on about "gingers" I just think they sound very dumb!

It's widespread. I come from Germany and ginger people are bullied/ teased there as well. Agree with PP that ginger hair together with light skin, freckles, etc. is associated with ethnicity. Therefore it's racist to treat someone differently because they have that hair colour.

Red hair is not all that common in Ireland. It is there most Irish people have dark hair, blue eyes and pale skin.
Being teased for having red hair is also quite common in Ireland, especially in the past and especially for boys.

People can bleach their skin, tan or fake tan.

Red heads, the "g word" is unacceptable....

Hair colour and texture reflect genetic variation. Hair colour can be associated with ethnicity because (guess what!) certain hair colours are more likely to be observed in certain social and ethnic groups. This includes red hair.

So...

Is it acceptable for a person to be harassed or worse because they have brown, afro-textured hair? No of course it's not, and, depending on who was doing the harassing, this would be considered a racist act.

So, is it acceptable for a person to be harassed or worse because they have red hair, an ethnic characteristic dominant in northern europe, particularly in historically repressed populations? Just saying.

As a ginger I couldn't care less really.

My kids aren't ginger, it seems to have died out at me in my generation line (none of 15 my cousins are). My mum, an aunt and my grandad were ginger so never gave it much thought growing up. Wasn't bullied over it or anything.

One thing that has got better as I've got older is that little old ladies have stopped touching my hair. Found it really horrible as a kid, maybe they've all died now or people don't want to touch the head of a nearly 40 year old nowadays 🤣

I've had a hatred of this for many years. Have told my kids off for mentioning hair colour. It's a terrible situation

It's racist and not OK.

I remember the time I was walking my then five year old child home from school, and a group of secondary boys walking home shouted "ginger prick" and the like at him.

He didn't quite make out what they were saying or that it was directed at him and asked what the big boys were saying, so I pretended not to know.

As he's got older, he's had ginger this ginger that from pupils his own age. It's horrible.

I used to dye my hair to get rid of the ginger in it after getting bullied for being ginger at school, but once I had ginger kids I stopped, because why should I dislike and disguise a harmless trait I share with them?

How is it OK to "not like ginger hair"?

What does that even mean?

It's interesting people raise the issue of the associated skin colouring/freckles as part of the issue. I am very freckly- all year around- all over my face/shoulders/chest etc. I've never had any negatives comments about it (although I personally don't like them at all). The difference is I'm dark haired/eyed and also tan easily. My freckles are mainly mid/dark brown.

I personally find ginger hair beautiful although as others have said, this isn't the point. It's a disgusting prejudice and unacceptable that people are mocked and bullied for their hair colour/skin colouring.

It definitely can’t be compared to racism however I think some commenters don’t understand just how bad the abuse you can receive just for being ginger is. It’s much worse than a few jokey comments. I have ginger hair and absolutely hated it at secondary school, every single day someone (not just pupils, teachers too!) would make an unpleasant comment. My toddler DD has my hair colour and while she gets lots of lovely comments now, i’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried for her and hope that she has a better time of it than me.

This thread brought to my mind this case which was presented at a seminar I attended some years ago. As the legal bods say, each case turns on its own facts and context here in this case is everything. But I found it quite surprising at the time.

https://truthlegal.com/discrimination-claims-was-calling-an-employee-a-fat-ginger-pikey-banter-or-harassment/

While it may not be meant as a racist comment, it has it's roots in racism. Like anything, it's all about context. If a British person of Indian descent jokes about a Scottish person's ginger hair then they are being an asshole. If a white British person comments on an Irish person then it's not unreasonable to take it as something much deeper. It's generational too, I might bristle a bit and dismiss it, but my Dad remembers the open racism of his youth so to him it would be much more offensive.

Put it this way, in 50 years time if (hopefully) society is more open and blended and without institutional racism, will it be funny to joke about afro hair? If not then that's your answer.

And I think it’s much worse for boys with ginger hair nowadays.

I agree WP it’s fine if we don’t like a certain hair colour, that’s our own choice after all.I don’t care for black hair tbh and it would only be wrong of me if I told a black haired person that or made sarcastic comments about it.
people do seem to think it’s ok to make comments about ginger hair out loud to others and I think it’s got worse not better as time’s gone on.
A very small proportion of the world population has any kind of red hair, so you’d think it would be valued.My best friend at school had ginger hair had a long lustrous pony tail and I was dead envious!

We think that they are jealous because we are kissed by fire.

I wish people wouldn't faux fetishise it. Ds was bullied out of year 7 and had to be withdrawn from school for his own safety as he was bullied so badly and they'd shout foul ginger slurs at him.

It's miserable having ginger hair and I was disappointed in the maternity unit when I realised his was ginger. It looks pretty, but the negativity just isn't worth it. If you're ginger in a nice area or have a feisty personality you might not get any bother, but they eat their own young in my neck of the woods, so it was just too much for ds.

And let's not forget the horrid abuse Nicola from girls aloud got based on her ginger hair.
People are definitely bullied for having ginger hair. And I some statistics do show an unconscious bias against gingers. Especially boys. It also tends to come with pale skin and freckles which are also seen by many as unattractive characteristics. And no matter people on here saying 'I love ginger hair' doesn't change peoples experiences.

No. It was as big a thing in the US when I lived there. Definitely a negative association with having Irish/ Scots heritage. I was in Texas.