At 11:54 04-05-2002 -0500, Julia Thompson wrote:
> > Jeroen who has heard all the insults for a kid with red hair... :-(
>
>What's up with that, anyway? I didn't get insulted for my red hair. (I
>got insulted for other reasons, but not for the red hair.)
<snip>
>So, while I have red hair, I don't understand what you're talking
>about. I wish I did so I could better empathize, but I'm glad I don't
>because it sounds like it wasn't a whole lot of fun growing up with red
>hair.
Not a whole lot of fun is more of an understatement than you would think.
For some reason, kids here love to pick on red-haired kids. Why? I am not
sure, really. Maybe because there are relatively few of us and we tend to
be easily noticable in the schoolyard crowd.
The word "rooie" ("red one") is the most frequently used and most moderate
of all names. "Vuurtoren" ("lighthouse") probably comes second. It is not
just the namecalling, though; it is also the neverending tormenting (yes,
tormenting, not just teasing) that wreaks havoc on many a redhead's mind.
If you have red hair, you are by definition a target for namecalling and
torment. If you then also happen to be smaller and weaker than the other
kids, life is even worse. I was smaller and weaker than the other kids...
(and it also did not help that in my early years, my hair was more orange
than red; it grew darker only very gradually).
How much worse? Let me put it this way. From the day I first went to school
till I was about 16 or 17 years old, life was *hell*. I have very few
*good* childhood memories (plenty of bad ones, though). It only got
gradually better after that. We are talking childhood *trauma* here, not
just some bad memories. The only words that correctly describe what I have
gone through is schoolyard terrorism. Had I been a bit bigger and a bit
stronger, I probably would have killed someone, or at least done some very
serious damage to certain people (I certainly killed several of them
repeatedly in my mind back then -- and those were no quick and painless
deaths).
This bullying still happens, and is not limited to red-haired kids. If you
manage to fall into any minority category, you will get picked on. School
staff are notorious for not dealing with it (they tend to look the other
way), but even the government has now recognised the huge problem and has
launched campaigns to fight it.
That is not going to stop kids from bullying other kids, though.
Fortunately for Tom, he does not have red hair (although most males of the
Van Baardwijk clan have it) so he will be less likely to become a victim.
But if he does become a victim of bullying, his daddy will be there to
teach him The Rules Of Engagement: the first time it happens, give the
bully a warning; the second time it happens, kick the bully where it
*really* hurts. No mercy.
Jeroen
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Wonderful World of Brin-L Website: http://www.Brin-L.com
Tom's Photo Gallery: http://tom.vanbaardwijk.com
