In 2013, "gingers" (natural redheads) were the focus of several notable artistic and documentary projects that explored the unique cultural identity, stereotypes, and social challenges associated with having red hair. Documentaries and Films Being Ginger
In February 2013 (the month the meme inexplicably shifted to), police departments across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom issued warnings. Schools went into lockdown protocols. In Victoria, British Columbia, a 16-year-old redhead was attacked and suffered a concussion. In California, a group of teenagers reportedly hunted a redheaded classmate.
" : Artist Anthea Pokroy debuted a major project involving portraits of over 500 redheads. The work explored themes of classification and community, using ginger hair as a metaphor for prejudice and group identity. Cultural Awareness and Research
For the redhead community—those who had lived their entire lives with carrot-top taunts— felt like a betrayal. As one blogger wrote at the time, "I spent my childhood being called 'Ranga' and 'Freckle Face.' Now the entire internet thinks it’s hilarious to debate whether I deserve human rights." gingers 2013
If you saw "gingers 2013" referenced online or in a meme, it most likely points to the aftermath of the "Kick a Ginger" hoax, the peak of redhead-themed viral content, or early anti-bullying awareness around hair color.
But every action has an equal and opposite reaction. was not just a year of victimization; it was the year redheads organized.
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. In 2013, "gingers" (natural redheads) were the focus
But the ghost of remains a cautionary tale. It reminds us that the internet is not a playground; it is an amplifier. A cartoon satire about blind hatred can, within a few years, become a real-life punch.
As we look back on that strange, volatile year, what did we learn?
If you were active on social media or YouTube in the early 2010s, a specific memory might still sting like a sunburn on a cloudy day. You remember the jokes. You remember the memes. You remember the hashtags. For a specific subset of the population—those with pale skin, freckles, and fiery hair— was not just another year. It was the epicenter of a bizarre, often brutal, cultural obsession known simply as "Gingers 2013." In Victoria, British Columbia, a 16-year-old redhead was
Gingerism is real, but not all prejudices are equal to one another
"Gingers" is a slang term for people with red hair, often used playfully or pejoratively. It became widely known in pop culture partly due to the South Park episode "Ginger Kids" (2005), which satirized prejudice against redheads.
Before 2013, redhead teasing was seen as benign—"Pippi Longstocking" jokes, "matchstick head" comments. But the organized, viral nature of the 2013 attacks exposed a raw nerve. For the first time, sociologists began classifying "gingerism" alongside other forms of physical prejudice. Studies in the British Journal of Sociology noted that redheads reported similar levels of workplace and school harassment as other visible minorities.