Bullied for red hair 30 years on

The Sun reports a 35 year old mother from Nottingham having been subjected to retrospective gingerism, three decades on from being bullied at school for the her ginger hair.

Natalie Harvey was targeted by cyber trolls on her Facebook and Twitter accounts, having posted a picture of herself as a child, which began circulating on the internet. Tweets included threats to “pull off your wig and reveal your ginger afro hair to everyone”. Mrs Harvey subsequently contacted police, with one online troll being issued a formal warning.

Mrs Harvey had experienced verbal and physical bullying as a result of her hair colour from the age of five, and upon leaving school used a variety of means to “control” her curled ginger locks, included straightening, dying and use of chemical treatment, before settling on a variety of wigs, with which she is pictured in present day photographs.

She told The Sun that the stress of the bullying impacted on her physical health, and has appealed for an increase in online security to tackle cyber bullying.

Random Assault for Being Ginger-haired

According to the article http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/9507952.Beaten_up_for_having_ginger_hair/ featured in the Daily Echo, redhead James Prior was randomly assaulted by 19-year-old Miguel Costa from Glengarry, New Milton. Costa’s co-conspirator was 22-year-old Robert Knapper from Hawthorn Close (also from New Milton).

On Maryatt Road, Prior was near his residence trying to find the paper. Meanwhile, gingeristic utterances were directed at Prior in the vehicle from which Costa and Knapper sat. “Prosecutor Mary Aspinall-Miles described how Costa started hurling abuse from the car at Mr. Prior based on the colour of his hair.”

Costa began punching Prior and had also bitten him in the face. Mr. Prior tried to exit the situation. “Mr. Prior put his palms up as if to calm him (Costa) down, and starting backing away at this point. He had no idea why he was being attacked. It appeared that it was simply because of the fact he had ginger-coloured hair.”

According to the Southampton Crown Court, Costa didn’t recall much of the encounter due to intoxication. Knapper accompanied Costa in the assault believing that he (Prior) and Costa were acquainted. Both men will be imprisoned for their actions.

Red-headed Student Severely Targeted

Several days ago, an article was published concerning 12-year-old Tyler Walsh’s tribulations at Yate International Academy in Bristol. Tyler is no stranger to gingerism. His mum Emma is unduly aware of it as well. The article http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4082436/Boy-is-taught-on-his-own-for-being-GINGER.html states that the school told Ms. Walsh it would be best for him to be taught in another setting away from the other students. She received this advice after her son had been cornered and harassed in the restroom by 10 other students.

Tyler has been bullied on more than one occasion since the start of his attendance at Yate International. His mum says the police were summoned following an altercation on the street. Tyler was kicked and punched in the abdomen. He has also been taunted in the hallways and has had his bagged lunch thrown out of reach during mealtime.

The school mentioned placing Tyler in an inclusion classroom to help him avoid run-ins with bullies. Ms. Walsh suggested having his schoolwork sent until he could begin at a new school. The academy denied her request because to do so (in their opinion) would mean abetting Tyler's absence.

Ms. Walsh is appalled at the treatment she and her son have received.

"Tyler is effectively being bullied out of school for being red-headed.”

"Yate International Academy has punished one boy, when a whole group were involved. I think it is absolutely disgusting."

Perspectives for Redheads

Columnist Kristen Tillotson mentions that it’s not easy being redheaded in her article: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-01-10/features/sc-fam-0110-redheads-20120110_1_redheads-red-hair-hair-color

Whether it's for good reasons or bad, there are plenty of times we seem to be reminded of our unique red tresses even as adults. Patti Stanger is the producer of a programme called Millionaire Matchmaker (on the Bravo cable television network) who has disparaging comments for redheads.

The social networking site Facebook currently has a page called "We Are the 2 Percent,” which is suggested to be aimed at Stanger. Erin Roche is the campaign initiator. She writes that the bigotry toward redheads is often mocked and ignored. Roche also says that gingerism is a tolerated form of prejudice.

In September of the preceding year, the largest sperm bank in the world (Cryos in Denmark) decided to prohibit any prospective donors whom have red hair. The clinic’s staff stresses no deliberate ill intent and asserts there just isn’t much of a demand.

Tillotson says some redheads find happiness and humour despite the behaviors some may encounter on a regular basis. Tim and Beth Robertson are mum and dad to four children, all of whom have red hair. Tim’s hair is auburn and his wife has strawberry blonde tresses. For the Robertson family, red hair is a commonality. They do claim to use more sunscreen than others.

Another fellow redhead, Ric Fohrman is 51-year-old car dealer and misses his hair-which he is starting to lose. Fohrman recollects that life at age 5 was difficult because of the teasing. However, as an adult he's enjoyed his red hair because people remember him more easily. He says being unknown is impossible for anyone with red locks.

At the conclusion of her article, Tillotson writes of several prominent redheads from the past and present.

The late actress and comedienne Lucille Ball believed that “Once in his life, every man is entitled to fall madly in love with a redhead.”

Post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh sported a red beard and had been known equally for his hair and artwork.

Renaissance-era painter Sandro Botticelli had dark hair (not red), but depicted Venus (circa 1486), the titian-haired Roman goddess of love. "Primavera" is another piece that Boticelli created illustrating red-tressed ladies.

Olympic snowboard multi-gold medalist champion Shaun White has often been called "The Flying Tomato." He used to enjoy the nickname but has since grown weary of it. People have also been known to call him "Animal," which is referenced to Jim Henson's “The Muppet show.”

Prince Harry is third in line to the British throne and although he has red locks, he's exempt from gingerism.

According to Tillotson, multi-record songstress Tori Amos isn't solely known for having bold red hues. She also has a soulful disposition.

Writer Illustrates Gingerism

American writer June Thomas’s article

http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/tv_club/features/2012/downton_abbey_season_2/week_1/downton_abbey_season_2_sir_richard_is_a_better_match_for_lady_mary_than_matthew_is_.html discusses the second season of British TV series Downton Abbey- which includes an example of gingerism. This is exemplified in a quip toward redheads Ethel and Mrs. Patmore.

“And given the Brits’ attitude to redheads if I were Ethel, I'd be asking Mrs. Patmore if she has anything in her pantry that also doubles as a hair dye.”

Citrus and Ginger Ad: Naughty or Nice?

Advertisements have been posted since magazines made their way into mainstream society during the early 1880s. When we flip through a magazine, we can still expect to find more than a fair share of them today. We may agree that some ads have definite flair and may use clever puns. We understand what it means. Other advertisements are open to interpretation.

The photo to the left shows an advertisement for Downy’s new Citrus Ginger fabric softener submitted to us by Adrianna Moore, one of our readers. This was an ad featured in the September 2011 US edition of Cosmopolitan magazine.

Pride and Salvation for Redheads

Since the 1960s, many television and print advertisements seemingly focused much more on our blonde and brunette peers. Perhaps having red wisps or ginger locks was considered too bold. Appearance sadly received the brunt of criticism as much in the past as it does today.

Whether people recall being teased during a previous decade or the start of the millennium, we’ve all been taunted at one time or another. In today's day and age, being a redhead still appears to be causation for verbal provocation (especially among school-aged children). Merely because some may experience public ridicule doesn’t mean society should perceive gingerism as normalcy.

When exiting our childhood, copper tops tend to develop a higher self-esteem and enjoyment of their own looks. We may hear a slew of ongoing compliments. Whether we enjoy flaunting our copper, auburn or cascading strawberry blonde hair many ladies like a bit more than fair complexions or freckles on their faces.

The problem with conventional hair products often remains consistent in that the ingredients aren't appropriate for redheads. Red hair can be especially sensitive to the wrong formulations. It may become dry, brittle and can lose its brilliant coloration more quickly.

Skin care and makeup also needs to be specially prepared because redheads naturally have a paler skin complexion. Pale skin can burn or become damaged more easily. Therefore, products need to have more ingredients found in sun block or suntan lotions.

The fact remains that we have many cosmetic options available to put our best features forward. Jen Rose and Jess Shailes both have flowing red locks and are a mother-daughter cosmetics business duo. Both ladies admit that having red hair and pale skin can be an arduous thing to contend with.

Rose became frustrated when the shampoo she really liked later ceased to exist. This very thing motivated her and her daughter to run a business specifically designed for redheads-whether hair is its natural red hue or dyed.

Their website is www.everythingforredheads.co.uk which provides products with a more natural preparation. For Jen and Jess, business is booming all over Europe, Finland, the Mediterranean regions and the US. If you don't have red hair, don't worry. The fair-skinned population will also fare well.

Products are becoming increasingly popular among ladies having titian locks, pale skin or both. Paula Pennypacker is the president and founder of Just for Redheads. Her story begins like many others with red hair and pale skin tones. Finding cosmetics and haircare is quite a task.

Paula can recall being on her first date with her then-future-husband Duane Abbujay. He wondered why she’d worn black mascara, since she had red hair. Pennypacker always struggled to find the right products and felt she was limited to using cosmetics for brunettes or blondes.

She didn't like her appearance on television when she was running for mayor of Toledo. After she and her husband married in the early 1990s, they started running the business together. The website www.justforredheads.com specializes in cosmetics and hair care for those of us with copper, strawberry and red-toned strands.

Zoe Wilson is another fellow redhead whom also made it a mission of hers to provide organic products specially prepared for the ginger-haired population. Chemical compounds such as parabens and SLS (Sodium Laureth Sulfates) are absent from the Simply Redheads cosmetic and haircare line. Whether we reside in the UK, the Mediterranean or within the US, the website www.simplyredheads.com offers plenty of product information and delivers worldwide.

Although gingerism will likely exist for the remainder of time, redheads can unite and be proud of their locks and general appearance. The world is continually seeing more red and it's becoming more desirable. In fact, many brunettes and blondes have decided to become a copper or ginger top. Hopefully, this will continue.