2 weeks Ago By Jonathan Walker
Ginger people need protection from bullying and abuse, according to an MP. Labour MP Chris Evans has asked ministers to consider extending equalities legislation to cover hair colour as well as race and sex. He put down a question in Parliament after a constituent suffered “horrendous” bullying in school.
Mr Evans - no relation to the ginger TV presenter with the same name - said: “This is a serious issue and a real problem. It may not appear to be on the same level as other forms of discrimination but for those on the receiving end it is very distressing. “I was asked by a constituent to raise this.
It’s tough out there for people who are bullied because they have ginger hair.” Famous people with ginger hair include Prince Harry , who once joked that his royal relatives were amazed “a ginger” had convinced a woman as beautiful as Meghan Markle to marry him. Some red-headed celebrities have spoken candidly about the bullying they received.
Model Lily Cole told a BBC podcast she was abused at school, saying: “Being ginger was a common kind of slur. I think it’s really problematic because it’s the kind of slur that’s largely overlooked by teachers because it’s not really politically incorrect.” And Harry Potter star Rupert Grint, who played Ron Weasley, told Empire magazine: “It was hard making friends!” Singer Ed Sheeran told Slam Radio that an episode of South Park in which the character Eric Cartman mocks ginger people “ruined” his life.
He said prejudice against people with ginger hair was prevalent in the UK but became more common in the US after the 2005 episode. Perhaps the most famous red-head of all time is Tudor monarch Henry VIII, described by the Venetian Ambassador as having “auburn hair combed straight and short, in the French fashion, and a round face so very beautiful, that it would become a pretty woman”. His daughter Elizabeth I was also a redhead, although she had lost her hair by the time she died, possibly due to the effects of smallpox.
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