I was born into this world with a full head of bright red hair, the first ginger in 3 generations on either side of my family
The rare genetic mutation of the recessive gene for red hair affects an estimated 2-4 % of the world's population, but it affects those of us who have it in many significant ways, both biological and societal. Growing up with red hair affected my childhood significantly, especially during social interactions with other children at school. As a result of my experiences and image, I base a decent amount of my personality and personal identity on my red hair
Standing Out
My parents are brunettes, and all of my siblings and cousins too; I am the only redhead in my family. Even my sister who had blondish hair as a child still looked like a member of the family, but now her hair has darkened to a similar brown. Everyone in my family tans yet I burn, peel, and stay pale. Nobody has freckles either, but my face was spotted with freckles as a child (only fading when I retreated myself to a life indoors, away from the sun). People tell me I don't look like my sisters and often ask if I was adopted. Luckily I look like my great-grandmother, so I'm confident in my genetic origins
In a crowded room, it is easier to spot the lone redhead than anybody else. We shine bright and pale among softer and darker natural tones. Since I stand out so much physically being a redhead (and also petite at only 5' fully grown), it has always been difficult for me to fit in, especially with other kids my age as a child. Generally people are adverse to things different than themselves, so other children instinctually singled me out for my red hair. The other ginger in my class and I were thusly forced into friendship simply based on the fact we were different than everybody else, leading many to wrongly assume we were related
As an adult, I still stand out because of my red hair. When people describe me to others, I am "That girl with the curly red hair." Most people have little difficulty remembering me because they know few people to associate me with. When I go out with a group of my girl friends, I am always the one guys notice first simply because I stand out. My hair is a prominent facial feature, so many people notice it first when they meet me
Bullying and Racism
I was bullied constantly as a child up through high school for my red hair and pasty skin. Common names people called me to make fun of my red hair were Carrot Top, Firecrotch, and the most notorious one: Ginger. Children also mocked my stature with Midget and my curls with Poodle. When it came to my pasty white skin, they called me Vampire, Daywalker, and Albino. Thanks to the famous episode of South Park, people shamed me for "having no soul." For the most part, I bit people or threatened to steal their souls if they continued to pester me, so they resorted to more drastic measures of throwing things in my hair such as salad, burritos, and the little edge you rip off the side of a spiral notebook piece of paper to express their disgust at my hair
I survived school-age bullying because I had bigger problems with my psychotic parents at home to deal with, but that viciousness is something I will never forget. Even as an adult I still experience some bullying due to my hair color. People still call me names and poke at me for having a temper due to my red hair if I ever get upset (even though I have great self-control when it comes to my temper). Some adults still act like I'm a witch (historically redheads were burned at the stake falsely for being witches) but most have grown up and treat me decently. My bosses at my old job treated my just like my teachers at school, punishing me for standing up for myself when something was wrong
Bullying redheads is a form of racism. Teachers never took this kind of discrimination seriously, but it is very serious to those of us who have experienced it, especially at school. If you ever took part in "Kick a Ginger Day," you are a racist. Many immigrants and people of minority status are racist towards me because I'm a ginger. When I work in customer service, many Middle Eastern and Arab men (and sometimes women) refuse to work with or try to argue with me, but utter no complaints about my blonde and brunette coworkers. Black women are often racist towards me, but black men are not. But the majority of the racism I experienced as a child was from non-redheaded whites. For those of you who don't agree that bullying redheads is racist, understand that the mutation of our MC1R gene stems solely from an Irish/Scottish race, and ginger in itself is a separate race as you cannot develop it after birth
Racism: noun
Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior
Compliments
For every jerk out there who bullied me for my red hair, there has been a decent human being who complimented me for it. Many cultures traditionally admired or worshiped redheads, specifically the Greeks in romantic artwork and Romans who sold redheaded slaves at a higher price, and red hair is currently a beauty standard in America. Elderly women love my curly red hair along with nurses and hairdressers. If I had a nickel for everytime anyone asked me "Is your hair natural?" I'd be a lot richer than I am now. Women who dye their hair red often tell me theirs isn't natural, and a girl I used to be friends with as a kid dyed her hair to look like mine. I distinctly remember an old lady on a street corner grabbing my hair like a lot of people who don't understand that having red hair does not give strangers license to physically touch us
Men treat me completely different as an adult than they did as children. Certain men fetishize red hair and most believe gingers to be more sexually alluring than blondes and brunettes. I first noticed men fetishized my hair in high school when I heard two men sitting next to my table at Red Robin talking about their redheaded ex-girlfriends. The top two compliments I receive from strangers tying to flirt with me are about my ass and my hair. My ex loved my hair, used to run his fingers through and pull on it all the time. One of my guy friends used to comment about how much he preferred to date girls with flaming hair. As an adult, I attribute a large amount of the attention I receive from men to my red hair
Redheads and Sex
According to science, redheads engage in more sex and experience better sex with more orgasms than any other hair color. Gingers in relationships have more sex with their partners and those who are single engage in more casual sex and hooking up. Our genetic makeup causes us to develop a specific pheromone that basically makes us smell more sexually desirable. Since the color red increases romantic interest, wearing or naturally having red hair increases sexual interest and desire. Ginger women orgasm at a threshold of over 40%, about 10% higher than brunettes and blondes. Personally I believe this is due to having more sensitive skin as the gingers I know tend to be more ticklish and develop skin irritation and rashes more than skin that contains normal melanin
Despite the science and fanfare, I am personally waiting until marriage to sleep with someone. People usually expect me to be more promiscuous than I am, probably because people assume redheads are promiscuous in general. A recent study touts that men approach redheads less because they view us as more attractive, and are therefore more scared of rejection. In my experience, I get much more attention than my non-ginger friends, so I highly doubt the "intimidation" excuse
Pain and Health Risks
Gingers experience pain differently than other people due to our specific genetic mutation that affects more than just our hair and skin color. We resist pain at higher levels and for longer than others. When it comes to surgery, especially dental work, we require approximately 20% more anesthesia to incapacitate and numb the pain; I can personally attest to still feeling pain during removal of all 8 teeth pulled out of my mouth. Due to the way our bodies metabolize, we are much more susceptible to the effects of pain medication and opioid dependency; I can personally attest to experiencing withdrawal symptoms from prescribed Hydrocodone. On the other hand, we are much more sensitive to changes in hot and cold temperatures. Even as a child I tried to explain to people how I felt pain differently than them, but I didn't fully understand it until I learned the connection to my genes. I never feared the doctor or flu shots as a child while my brunette sisters literally screamed in terror. Fun fact: redheads are also resistant to capsaicin, allowing us to enjoy spicier foods
Despite all the benefits the ginger gene provides, we are unfortunately at risk for several severe medical conditions. The different type of melanin in our skin that gives us such a pale color not only increases our chance of skin cancer, but specifically doesn't contain cells that help prevent Melanoma from duplicating. Memories of tube and spray sunscreen slathered all over plague my summer vacations. As an adult, I've fallen in love with wide sun hats to protect my face, wear thin long-sleeved clothes to cover my arms, and support using sun umbrellas. Polarized sunglasses are an especially important tool for redheads to help prevent skin cancer on the especially delicate skin around our eyes. Unfortunately we are also more at-risk of developing the lethal degenerative disease Parkinson's
Fortunately there is one advantage we gained with our pasty white skin: us redheads produce our own vitamin D. The greatest benefit of the sun is vitamin D, a necessary nutrient to regulate mood and happiness, so being "allergic" to the sun should theoretically cause more depression in redheads. Fortunately for evolution, the genetic mutation that created red hair took this vitamin D from the sun problem into consideration. Gingers not only create their own vitamin D in low sunlight conditions, but also absorb it from the sun more effectively. Redheads have long been believed to be happy than their darker-haired counterparts, but the way their bodies process vitamin D seriously supports it
Bravery and Success
Redheads have long been considered to be brave, fearless, brash, and fiery. Not sure whether this comes from our genetic makeup or the way people treat us as children, but I agree with it to a certain extent. Brave, a Disney movie about a fearless girl with fiery curly red hair (just like mine) perfectly captures the bravery and attitude of gingers. People tell me I'm brave for standing up for myself and defying critics, but that stems from defending myself for my red hair as a child. Personally I feel like my red hair has given me the freedom to not care about what others think of me and to try harder to prove myself. An added bonus of red hair is that I feel free to make all the questionable fashion choices I desire because people are more likely to focus on my hair anyway
Historically, redheads are disproportionately famous than others, noting Cortez, Napoleon, Nero, Boudica, Winston Churchill, Thomas Jefferson, and Queen Elizabeth as fearless conquerors and leaders. Famous fictional redheads include Pippi Longstalkings, Ron Weasly from Harry Potter, and Merida from Brave. Gingers are about 4 times more likely to become CEOs, likely as a result of trying to be better than what people expect of them. When it comes to income, blondes supposedly make the most, but I know plenty of waitresses who earn much more in tips when they dye their hair red. Personally I feel like my red hair and personality have helped with success at work. People offer me jobs all the time (I had three job offers before I quit my job last month and I wasn't looking) and I've been hired for every position and promotion I've interviewed for. I believe my red hair also helps me at work because people remember me and guys who are attracted to me will purchase more expensive products
I Love My Red Hair
Despite the criticism and bullying I've experienced, I love my curly red hair. I feel like my experiences in life would've been much different if I was born brunette like my sisters. Growing up I learned to embrace being a ginger and it has made me a much better and successful adult. I believe everyone is beautiful in their own way, and I appreciate my red ringlets for my own unique beauty. When I was in high school, I cut off and donated my hair to Locks Of Love so someone else could appreciate being a gorgeous redhead like me
My two favorite quotes by the adored I Love Lucy's Lucille Ball should sum up the rest of this Take:
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