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Growing your hair out as a "f*** you" to a person, institution or society. Or to be a rebel of some sort is not a good reason to grow your hair out to me. In my opinion it promotes the stereotype of longhairs as being anti social. Then again it could just be a flimsy excuse for doing something you wanted to do all along. While maintaining one's machismo. And yes I ran into a longhair guy who said that's why he grew his hair out. I won't say where this was or the exact reason he gave for privacy reasons. This was what inspired me to write this post.
I have to disagree.
Any reason at all to grow you hair long is a good reason.
I would also mention that i was inspired by the Beatles to
grow my hair long. My mom was fine with it, my dad was out of the picture at the time (divorce).
Now I did get a lot of blowback from school authorities, and employers. So the more they complained the more I was
deterined to keep my hair long. I always wanted long hair and the more blowback I got the more I was determined to screw
authrority and keep my hair long. The more blowback i got the
more I opted to growing my hair out as a "f*** you" to a person, institution or society. Or to be a rebel of some sort is not a good reason to grow your hair out to me. For perspective look up
photos of the Beatles around 1964 and notice how short their hair was. Yet even with it being that short it was very controversial at the time.
There are reasons personal and reasons public for growing one’s hair. I cut mine off last year after it was down to my tailbone for a few hairs. I am planning on growing out my hair again. I am American Indian, own my own business, and am not really intimidated by much any more.
People in the area where I live thought at one point that long hair was an indication of homosexuality (which it is not) and ribbed me about it. At this point, I do not really care what they want my sexuality to be like. I play Buffy Sainte-Marie quite a bit, so when people get on my nerves out and about, out comes the phone and Buffy Sainte-Marie.
I found that I lost myself after cutting my hair. The longer my hair is getting, the more I feel normal. Some of us for cultural, historical, or personal reasons need to have hair as long as we want in order to feel normal and human.
Some of us want, or just do send a message with our hair length. In many American Indian Cultures, we have ways of signaling social location and personal beliefs through hair/hair length. I had a beard the first time around, this time I think I will keep the beard mostly short while having the longer hair. To me there is no such thing as long hair for men, women do not have a defined length that is long and neither do we.
If you are feeling the need to make a statement to some one with your hair at any length, that is your business. I do not have to agree or disagree for any reason for you to do this. Recently I have thought about writing an Employee Manual. In my state these are legally binding documents regarding personnel and their behavior and appearance. I for one, plan on following California’s recent lead (I do not live there) and writing a non-discrimination clause into the manual for hair. I think natural hair is a sign of confidence no matter the ethnic background of the person. I think black women who allow their hair to be natural exude a certain confidence about how they were created that I find attractive.
My suggestion is "BYTS"- Be Your True Self. If that means that you have hair that drags on the ground, great, if that means you have hair that is in long dreads, why not? I for one do not agree with keeping Euro-centric cultural norms. I am not assimilated, though I am Orthodox Christian, and Orthodox Christianity does not require men to have short hair. So, for reasons of feeling masculine when my hair is long and VERY masculine at that, I want it back. I fee sexy when it caresses over my back and my chest. It is like getting a free massage over the sensitive touch nerves in my neck and upper back. It is thick, dark and glossy when it is long with some curl to it. Women have been jealous, men have been angry, which can cover jealousy or lack of comfortability in their own masculinity.
Some mean will feel threatened by men who have highly masculine traits and long hair because their own masculinity is not that ideal. I have high cheek bones, dark eyes, skin that bronzes. For me my sexual fitness shows through my body and hair is an integral part of the body, not extra. I think people who suffer from body dimorphism include those who detach hair from being an integral part of their humanity. My hair having all of the qualities described above, and long, elicits many responses from men not comfortable in their sexuality as they are often caddy comments from straight individuals. Many people in the area where I live and are my age and younger are white and balding already in some form or fashion. I look around and think, wow, they are balding already. I am not, which is nice, if it happens it happens. So, yet again, longer hair will set me off to women as having some youth in me and something of a confidence the shorthairs (men) do not have.
If some one came into an interview at my business and was male and had hair in a single braid down the back, I would probably be more inclined to hire them than if the same person came in with the high and tight duplicate looking type. I would wonder what kind of true real thinking power this duplicate type had when compared to the man with hair in a long single braid down his back (I refuse to say pony tail as much as possible). The man with the planning department level imagination is the guy with the single braid, not the high and tight man.
I think one main point that people who oppose long haired men are remembering is the 1970’s when many men had horrid looking long hair. Keeping the hair long and kempt is a definite plus. A man with unkempt long hair who looks like he just rolled out of bed, is not getting the job at my business. He has to look ready to go, the rolled out of bed look is not a ready to go look. As long as you are willing to keep your hair kempt, you should hopefully not have much of a problem looking for work. It takes extra effort to have nice looking longer hair, and that effort shows. A neat and tidy long haired man screams creativity with self-control. Both creativity and self-control are valued in business. If you can show that you have both if a question comes up in an interview or possible write-up situation, you may be able to get around a boss or potential employer who has trouble thinking outside of their drone-mentality box. At the very least, you may give them food for thought for the future and they may end up giving you a shot, and you may help broaden their minds.
Hang in there man.
ᏕᏙᏓᏓ! (See you later)
The thing that gave long hair a bad name was the Manson murders and caused the hippie movement to get painted with a broad brush. As kid in the 70s I remember how Helter Skelter rocked middle class suburbia and people really came to fear longhairs. And the Hell's Angels and the incident at the Rolling Stones Altimont concert didn't help either.
I know what you mean about feeling like yourself when you hair is long. 'Cause when I had short hair I was always self conscious. I believe long hair improves you posture. You kind of have to stand up straighter to keep the hair out of your face.
Long hair used to be a sign of intelligence and nobility in pre-industrial Europe. Most of the classical composers had long hair. which is why classical music got referred to as that "long hair stuff".
When it comes to machismo I stopped ridding bicycles about 30 years ago after a Saturday night live cartoon that portrayed bicyclists as gay. Well now I'm battling diabetes and weight issues.
I grew up and starting growing my hair in the 1960s. I was one
of those hippies. What gave hippies a bad name was the
anti war movement.
People didn't come to fear hippies.
I was living in Wisconsin at the time and the Manson murders
barely caused a ripple. Neither did Altimont.
I stopped riding my bicycle in the 1980s, too many
lunatics on the road. Also around here the Ghost Bike
has gotten alot of exposure. (the ghost bike is to
memorialize the many bicycle riders killed in motor vehicle
accidents. )
Grow it out because you want long hair. Doesn’t matter the reason or what any one else thinks.
Darrin
I have to say there is no such thing as a bad reason to grow out your hair. When I was 30, I had been "on the wagon" for several months and I decided then since I was committed to a life of sobriety I would never allow corporate entities or family members to dictate my hairstyle again. And I had always wanted to grow my hair, so I treated myself.
While I never grew my hair to my waist, I have a pretty decent head of hair and 24 years later, I kept it. Even my bosses tell me my hair suits me. Enclosed is my latest pic - let me know what you think!
If one wants to grow out his hair, it doesn't matter the motivation. If he loves the result, I applaud it.
