Hug a Ginga Day 27/05/2010
Tomorrow The Edge radio station is encouraging us all to “Hug a Ginga.” There has been a bit of controversy over this – is it just a bit of fun or is it plain mean? Stephen Simpson, a Christchurch father of two redheads has made his position against it very clear and some schools have banned it. The poll on Close Up suggested most New Zealanders thought it was harmless but then I bet they weren’t all red heads. How would our elderly folk like a “Hug a wrinkly” day, or perhaps “Hug a dwarf” for those vertically challenged folk, “Hug a fatty” would’ve caused an uproar surely, maybe “Hug a jumbo” for those with big ears. Before deciding that redheads are being a bit sensitive remember that not all redheads like their hair colour. Take a moment to think of the one feature you like the least about yourself and imagine a nationwide campaign drawing attention to that feature...suddenly hiding out at home all day may appear reasonable. Even those redheads who love their hair colour don’t necessarily like being singled out because of it – to quote a comment on the Edge website: Thanks very much (NOT), I just overheard my workmates discussing what they are going to do for me "ginga day". I'm so embarrassed, don't think I'll be going to work tomorrow. GUTTED” If the person above is considering not going to work, take pity on those young redheads who have to go to school. They have to face larger crowds of less mature participants and they are at an age when they are much more vulnerable to comments passed about their appearance. It’s no secret that bullies target any point of difference they can find and The Edge is pointing a great big arrow at red hair. I know some readers may have the attitude that kids need to learn to ‘harden up’ and cope with bullying but this is asking them to do more than deal with a couple of lippy peers giving them a hard time. This campaign could mean the whole school is giving them flak and relentless or large scale bullying is not easy to cope with. You only have to have watched a couple of episodes of Nigel Latta’s ‘Beyond the Darklands’ to see how it can really screw people up and have a long term impact. Take the time to do the research and you’ll see that almost every High School massacre has been a once bullied gunman out to get revenge. I have therefore come to the decision that I will not be participating. I asked my family what they thought of it – wondering whether my teacher training had made me a bit PC - but they too were unanimous in their disapproval: “It’s a total piss take” (hubby) “It’s sooooo sarcastic, especially the etiquette vid” (daughter). Sadly in fighting against the ‘Hug a GInga Day’, opponents have raised its profile. At the end of the day that’s what the radio station is after: if they were really interested in the well being of redheads they could’ve at least made it “Give a Ginga 5 bucks” day. CommentsAmanda Inskeep 27/05/2010 7:29am
Totally agree with you Jacinda, its all media hype and unfortunately at the expense of a minority group. Its blatent discrimination masked as entertainment. To all those who might read this....if you usually listen to The Edge I challenge you to turn it off tomorrow. Lets send them a message ....really poor form team!! 27/05/2010 10:54am
good post and a great site... do you mind if i plug it in the Church newsletter? Jacinda 27/05/2010 1:51pm
Thanks all for taking the time to comment and for the positive feedback. And Michael the plug would be really good - I'd love the site to be more interactive so the more that visit the merrier, cheers J Chaucey 03/06/2010 2:11pm
I agree too. And I laughed out loud at your suggestion to give red heads $5 instead. Sounded good. 08/02/2011 12:58pm
Strange that the vanity which accompanies beauty — excusable, perhaps, when there is such great beauty, or at any rate understandable — should persist after the beauty was gone. Do you think so? 23/03/2012 1:31pm
You write very detailed,Pay tribute to you.Couldn’t be written any better. Reading this post reminds me of my old room mate! He always kept talking about this. I will forward this article to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Thanks for sharing Leave a Reply |
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