For as long as most of us can remember, we were told that boys had short hair and girls had long hair. It was the norm that we were most likely taught to follow through example; family members, friends, and even celebrities reinforced it to us. Somewhere along the way, we started to believe the misconceptions that the length of our hair meant something more. How long our locks are is somehow telling of our sexuality, femininity (or lack thereof), or if we’re having a mental breakdown? It’s become so ingrained in our beauty standards that women and girls are worried what the world will think of them if they decide to cut their hair.
While there are definitely more women taking the leap and rocking their short hair, it is still not the norm. Women with short hair catch people’s eyes, and oftentimes unsolicited opinions. It’s about time we get rid of the stigma around short hair. Here’s a few reasons why we need to embrace women rocking short hair.
- The Negative Comments Need to End
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No one wants to hear negative comments about how they look. If your hair is something that gives you your sense of beauty or confidence, a negative comment is that much worse. For women wanting to chop their hair for the first time, fear of the mean things people might say could be enough to keep them from doing what they want. We’re scared someone will question our femininity, call us ugly, or say we looked better with long hair. It’s easy enough to say we can ignore these comments from people on the street or in the Instagram comments, but what about comments from our family? Friends? S.O.? The opinions of people close to us truly have an impact, whether we want it to or not. They may not be commenting with bad intentions, like if someone says “Oh, but you had such beautiful long hair.” These comments can still hurt, despite their possibly good intentions. Regardless, other people shouldn’t have the power to make us feel self-conscious about what we do with our hair.
If we all openly embrace women doing whatever they want with their hair, maybe we can start to shift to a culture where people don’t feel they have the right to make negative comments.
- Break Down Short Hair Stereotypes
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Because women are typically expected to have long hair, a number of stereotypes exist surrounding women with short hair. The most common one I’ve heard is women are worried people will think that they’re a lesbian. First of all, it’s pretty ridiculous to think that the length of our hair is an absolute identifier of our sexual preferences. I’d like to think that sexuality is a little bit deeper than that. Also being called a lesbian shouldn’t be an insult regardless, but that’s part of a larger problem.
Women may also be scared people will think they look like a boy, or that they aren’t feminine. This is also a ridiculous fear/stereotype, since you can be feminine as f*ck and have really short hair.
On TikTok there’s been a trend that started during the coronavirus of girls shaving their heads. Maybe it’s because they won’t have to see anyone for a while, but these girls are cutting all their hair off and still look beautiful and feminine. Femininity goes beyond however long our hair is. So, if you’re a grown woman thinking that by cutting off your hair you’re going to magically transform into looking like a little boy, that just isn’t the case.
After cutting my hair, I’ve had people look at me comfortingly and say, “Oh, well it’ll grow back.” What if I don’t want it to be longer? What if I’m happy with the length that it is? We need to stop assuming that the girl wants her hair to be long again after cutting it, or that she was going through a breakup and now regrets her decision. It’s often not the case, and these shouldn’t be the first things that come to mind when we see a girl with short hair.
- It Can Look Great On Literally Anyone
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For anyone about to take the plunge and cut their hair, there’s so many ways short hair can work. From bobs to pixie cuts, a variety of styles means that there’s something for everybody. Short hair is also versatile since it’s easy to manage, style and color. We need to support women with short hair simply because they’re living their best life.
Personally, I’ve grown my hair down to my waist and I always end up liking it way better when I cut it all off. Currently I’m rocking a chin-length bob and contemplating a pixie cut. And while it is scary for some of us to cut that much of our hair off, it’s also liberating to be able to wake up and go and not have to worry about doing our hair. It’s a great way to look chic and effortless, and we shouldn’t have outdated beauty norms get in our way.
- “A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life.” -Coco Chanel
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This video honestly sums it all up, whether you want to shave your head or find a cut not as extreme. This YouTuber talks about all the benefits of cutting your hair, and it’s hard to not be convinced.
- It’s Our Hair, We Can Do Whatever We Want With It
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No one should have any say over you hair except you. It’s as simple as that. If a woman wants to cut all her hair off, everyone around her should support that. Her Instagram comments should be flooded with comments about her beauty and style, and no one should feel they have the right to say anything negative.
Even if having short hair isn’t necessarily for you, that doesn’t mean you can’t support the women with short hair around you. This isn’t just about the length of our hair; it’s about being able to change our appearance however we want without being worried of what other people will think. We shouldn’t be afraid of doing what we want with our hair, so dye it, get bangs, cut it all off, grow it out then cut it off again. At the end of the day, it’s just hair and it grows back. Women face judgement every day about their appearance, which honestly needs to stop.