The darkest corner of was the annual "Kick a Ginger Day." Inspired directly by the South Park episode (where Cartman declares November 1st as the day to "kick a ginger"), the idea went viral on Facebook and Tumblr.
Fast forward to today. The cultural needle has moved. We have seen the rise of "Ginger Appreciation" TikTok accounts. Redhead models are no longer a novelty. Actors like Sadie Sink ( Stranger Things ) and Sophie Turner ( Game of Thrones ) have made red hair aspirational rather than laughable. gingers 2013
For the children who were targeted in , the scars are real. A 2019 follow-up study found that redheads who were teenagers in 2013 have higher rates of anxiety around large crowds and social media than their non-red peers. The "joke" had a body count—not of lives, but of innocence. The darkest corner of was the annual "Kick a Ginger Day
If there was a poster child for "Gingers 2013," it was Ed Sheeran. By 2013, Sheeran had already broken through with his debut album + , but it was his ubiquity that year—touring with Taylor Swift on the Red Tour and preparing for the release of his sophomore album x —that solidified his status. We have seen the rise of "Ginger Appreciation"