When I initially had my hair cut, I was met with a variety of emotions. There was anger, fear, confusion, and all sorts of negativity- none of which took into account how I felt about my own hair. While I had long hair as a child, I wasn’t one to shy away from scissors and to cut it down to a pixie felt like a completely natural evolution in a long list of hairstyles I had pursued over the years. And yet, despite this being a completely temporal and personal decision, very few people actually seemed to understand that. Even the initial hair dresser I asked blatantly refused to give me a pixie cut. She informed me that I didn’t know what I wanted. The second hair dresser debated me for a few minutes before finally taking scissors to my locks.
The reaction from my peers was instantaneous and persistent. Without hair to hide behind, both literally and figuratively, one leaves themselves much more open to insult and scrutiny- especially in a gendered society such as ours that claims girls have long hair and boys have short. I’ve had both men and women tell me on a variety of occasions, never prompted, that I “must have to try really hard to not look like a dyke,” and that “maybe boys would like [me] if I grew out my hair.” Those are perhaps the lesser offensive statements.
Eventually, after facing comments that questioned my gender and my sexuality, accused me of misandry (because somehow having short hair punishes men?), and generally aimed to tear apart my self-confidence, I grew a tough skin about it. My short hair has become a source of empowerment that I use to cock my head high and march against the general status quo. Several other women I’ve spoken to have had a similar experience with cutting their hair short, and they too find the cut both appealing and empowering. There’s something to say for exposing yourself, especially when it involves an absolutely adorable cut that frames your face excellently.
However, it shouldn’t be empowering. It shouldn’t be such a statement. There are so many myths surrounding pixie cuts and that speaks volumes about the heteronormative, sexist, and homophobic nature of our society. The message it sends to girls is that their hair is their dignity and beauty, and cutting it is either political or punishing. Far too many people place their self-worth in the length of their hair, and our culture tends to encourage this destructive ideology. Pixie cuts aren’t a call to arms or a drastic measure. They’re not a sign of a damaged or angry woman. It’s a cute haircut, and we need to stop treating it as anything different.