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This One’s For You, Mom
To The Moms of Boys With Long Hair
Happy Mother’s Day to every mom, but especially the moms of boys with long hair (and those who “tolerate” long hair on their "older" boys 😉).
You’ve supported our flow through tangles, bullies and grief from strangers. We’re grateful for your encouragement through the awkward stage (even though you secretly wanted us to cut it), tolerating our manes in the family photos, and all the frequent hair tips.
We appreciate all you’ve done, but also what you’ve had to endure! From mean comments to discriminatory dress codes, we have heard a lot of stories from moms.
Here are just a few of the comments, stories and situations we've heard about from moms of boys with long hair.
What Moms Tolerate
“I’m the proud mom of a newly-minted 6th-grader, who came home on day 2 of school asking to get a haircut because he got teased in science lab for his long hair.”
“My 5-year-old son is dealing with bullies over his beautiful long blonde hair. ”
“Our 10-year-old son has been called sweetie, cutie, and complemented on “how pretty her hair is...” ”
“My son is 11 and has had long hair most of his life. He has recently been talking about cutting it off before starting middle school. He said he is tired of being bullied & told he looks like a girl. ”
“I never even questioned whether my two boys “should” grow their hair out. Of course they can grow their hair out … because they WANT to. Done. End of story.”
“A woman passive aggressively commented to someone in front of me ABOUT my son, “come on, you have to cut a boy’s hair eventually.” Um, actually no, you do not.”
“He was even asked by two [of his] instructors if he was a girl.”
“He managed to pass the awkward stage at age 10, and since then for the last two years has been called a girl at least once a day.”
“I’m so tired of my son being shamed for having long hair. I’m tired of the snide comments. I’m tired of him being called “she” when he’s clearly dressed as a boy. I’m tired of him questioning himself because he feels like he needs approval from others.”
“I’m not sure he’s ever met another boy with long hair.”
“He asked to grow it almost a year ago and I just said sure. Now I’m constantly getting complaints from all the older men in our family. He’s so happy with his hair. And plans to donate it when he’s ready to cut it, in honour of his uncle who died this year.”
“After a very bad bullying experience, we left that school at the end of 3rd grade.”
“It is the handful of adults who feel compelled to be mean to a child they have no need to interact with in any way that most astound me.”
“I agree that the most rude comments come from adults! They are actually angry over it which I will never understand. I love my son’s beautiful curls, short or long. I just want him to be himself.”
“When he was 5 & went to kindergarten was when the real bullying started from kids. The kids (mostly the boys) were ruthless, always calling him a girl. Unfortunately that school wasn’t very good dealing with bullies & suggested I cut his hair to stop the torment. Um, no!”
“I have even been asked, “are you trying to make him gay?” ”
“He is getting big enough to think it’s funny when they call him a girl. I often tell him it’s because he’s so handsome.”
“The worst is definitely the comments from strangers. That’s something only other longhairs and the parents of longhair boys can understand!!”
“We have used his long hair as a learning experience. We now know how it feels to be criticized and judged, and it has given us a broad spectrum of compassion and empathy for others.”
Happy Mother’s Day from The Longhairs
Good grief. Is it hard enough to be a parent without others questioning your parenting??
Whatev! Here at The Longhairs we have your back, and there are a lot of other moms here who understand and have your back too.
A little extra shout out to moms of boys with long hair today. Kick your feet up, don’t do any chores, take a break from momin for a minute and just relax.
We offer support and encouragement to men and boys with long hair...and their moms! See all our posts about Little Guys With Long Hair
Who Are These Guys?
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