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Red Hair and Gatekeeping
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Wanted to get some consensus on how other redheads feel in regards to people with brown hair calling themselves gingers? My friends have told me I’m gatekeeping being ginger and I shouldn’t care what people call themselves but it annoys me personally because I was in middle school when that ginger episode of South Park came out and was bullied horrendously. So now as an adult when I hear people with clearly brown hair and maybe a red tinged beard call themselves ginger it pisses me off a little bit lol
Edit: Spelling
Edit: Thanks for the replies everyone, this thread has been really validating for me. I should have looked for my people sooner but I assumed all the redhead subs would be mostly people fetishizing red hair but after looking through the rules and what the mods have said it’s clear that’s not tolerated here.
Top Comment:
It’s so weird. If they want it so much, they can dye it. Otherwise it’s like bragging about your tattoos when you’ve only drawn on yourself with marker
How to Tell if You're a Redhead: A Comprehensive Guide
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I've been seeing so many posts on here of people with brown or dirty blonde hair asking if they're redheads. So, as a certified redhead, I thought I would make an easy to follow guide on how to tell if you're a redhead.
1. You were bullied in school for being a redhead. I feel like this one is pretty self explanatory. If you were called 'carrot top', compared to a bloody tampon, or asked if your freckles were 'cancer spots' when you were in school, you might be a redhead!
2. You can't step outside for more than fifteen minutes without burning. Everyone knows that redheads are intolerant to the sun. Due to the MC1R gene, we produce more pheomelanin than eumelanin, meaning we have less protection to UV rays.
3. People compared you to redhead celebrities/fictional characters that, other than your hair, you share absolutely no resemblance to. Every redhead has had this experience. Has someone compared you to Ron Weasly from Harry Potter, even though you look completely different? Have you been told you look like Merida, or Emma Stone (even though she's not a real redhead)? Congrats, you might be a redhead.
4. You've been the subject of perverted comments and queries. I'm sure that every redhead here has been asked if the carpet matches the drapes, or if it's true that redheads are better in bed. If weird people fetishize you just because of your hair color, you could be a redhead.
5. Everyone asks you if you're Irish/Scottish, and/or if your parents have red hair. People just assume that you're Irish or Scottish, even if you have the strongest American accent ever. They ask if your parents or siblings have red hair. Why this phenomenon happens, I'm not sure, but it might be a sign that you're a redhead.
6. Local anesthetics just do not work on you. Have you ever been to the dentist and failed to have any sort of numbing effect from lidocaine? You may carry the MC1R gene - it causes an increased resistance to anesthetics. Great job!
7. The other hair on your body is also red. Red beards, armpit hair, pubes, leg hair, eyelashes, eyebrows are a good indicator that yes, you're a redhead. If those other hairs are brown or black, then no, you're probably not a redhead.
Did you score a 7/7? Congrats, you can call yourself a redhead.
Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
Top Comment: 5a. People see your brunette parents and make cracks about you being adopted or the postal carrier being your real father. (I wish I were kidding, but I’m sure some of you can relate.)
For the redheads, how often are you getting complimented or asked about your hair colour?
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I'm a redhead and absolutely love my hair. Been a very love/hate relationship during my primary school years into my teens and I suffered some absolutely horrendous bullying which put me in a very low place over a lot of years until I was finally, and regrettably, allowed to dye by hair.
Adults were always complimenting me on my hair when I was a child but I didn't listen then but now I'm finding the number of people complimenting me increasing. Today I had 3 people just randomly asked if my hair was natural and how beautiful it was.
Have any other redheads noticed an increase in interest in your hair, whether natural or dyed?
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Red hair problems
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Hey guys, I don't know if this is the right place to speak about this but I'm not sure where else too! I've got really long bright ginger hair and am male in my 30s, I've had problems my whole life with bullying because of my hair being different to others. As I got older it settled down and I stopped caring but recently I cannot seem to shake the anger. I've had 2 incidents over the last week with people bullying me for my hair and I have reacted violently towards them, something I am very ashamed of as I thought I was a peace loving person. It's gotten to the point where I want to cut it all off and hide my head (like I used to when I was young to try and 'blend in'). There isn't much of a solution so I'm not sure why I'm writing this but I'm just struggling with myself at the moment and not dealing with antagonists very well. Any tips are very welcomed
Thanks ginges!!!
Top Comment:
I see a lot of bias when it comes to red hair. Typically from men about men.
For some reason its accepted as beauty thing in women, but not in men.
I wish I could tell you why, but i can understand your frustration.
And i have no doubt your hair is awesome!
Looking for stories of how your red hair has affected you
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Hi! I'm doing an essay about my experiences as a redhead and how it's shaped me, and the thought crossed my mind that I've not met that many other redheads and wanted to compare experiences. I'm talking about times when you may have been isolated for your hair or how it affects your day to day life.
Thank you!
Top Comment: When I was a kid it was like hell. Not only was I a redhead, I was also overweight. That led to a lot of bullying, people not taking me serious, treating me as if I was a clown, my crushes not paying any interest to me, and so on... All those people's treatment made me insecure. Everytime I'd enter a crowd I would feel anxious, thinking stuff like "Everyone's looking at me, they think I'm a weirdo." When I'd talk to girls, in the back of my mind I would say "She probably isn't interested in me. Why would she? Girls never like redhead guys, they like guys who are 'tall, dark, and handsome'. It was like that until I got into college. Now, at college there were like-minded people. And some even said they liked redhair and that it is unique. Present day: I cut all the toxic people from my life, I embrace the uniqueness of my red hair, I also lost weight and gained a bit of muscle which obviously changed my mentality. This was a long post, but the bottomline is: I don't give two shits what people think of me. No matter what we do or say, no matter how good we act and nice we are, there will always be some people who will talk behind our backs. I guess that means we're on the right path 😎
What do you like about being a redhead?
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I like it for a multitude of reasons, I think the genetic differences are cool, like needing more anesthesia and being able to produce vitamin d more efficiently etc. but I also like being part of a genetic minority. Hbu?
Top Comment: Same. I consider other redheads to be my extended family. As for genetics, I wonder sometimes if other redheads share certain traits but I haven't figured out how to phrase my question appropriately.
What are thought on red hair?
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I was wondering what people of latin decent thought of red hair. I'm mostly asking because alot of girls will talk to me about how beautiful my long curly red hair is. I was wondering if it was cultural thing or something?(sorry if it sounds like I'm generalizing)
Top Comment: Red hair is extremely rare here, so it would be treated as such, everyone would mention it or ask if that's your real hair color. I have a friend who's ginger and she always gets that
How do redheads feel about this?
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Hello everyone, this is the first time I’m posting on here,I just want to hear about your opinions on this situation.
I’m going to start off by saying that I myself am a brunette and a former fake redhead🤣 I used to dye my hair copper red for a year because I’ve always liked natural red hair. Of course, I’ve always made it clear with people who didn’t know me, that it was hair dye.
However, something that I didn’t expect, happened; for some reason, guys started to pay me more attention, especially natural redheads.
Many of them used to stare at me and smile at me,and some would come up and talk to me; whenever they brought up the topic of the hair color ,I had to tell them that it was hair dye ,they always thought that I was a natural one, and when I told them ,their interest wasn’t affected one bit.
How do you guys and girls feel about fake redheads? I’m curious to see your opinions. Maybe I got this reaction from them because in Italy there aren’t many.
Waiting for your answers on this discussion :3
Top Comment: It's your hair, you're welcome to do whatever you like to it. I don't mind people dyeing their hair red, as long as they don't pretend their hair color is natural. For a lot of us, having red hair is tied into our identity. For many, it's something that shaped our experiences growing up. So when someone comes along and lays claim to being ginger while having avoided the often negative experiences that many (if not most) of us face, it can be frustrating. But yeah, if you want to dye your hair and join the legion of daywalkers, feel free.