Essex Police has confirmed it is investigating two allegations of hate crimes against people with ginger hair, sparking criticism from local taxpayers who accuse the force of wasting resources. The revelation came during a meeting of the Thurrock Independent Advisory Group, where Inspector Lee Argent disclosed the ongoing inquiries.
Hate crime officer explained that such offences are 'often a matter of perception,' despite hair colour not being a protected category under police hate crime recording guidelines, which cover race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and transgender issues.
Residents expressed disbelief at the news. Robert Newton, 40, from Colchester, said: 'I rarely see police officers on the beat any more... Perhaps they're all wasting their time on these hate crimes.' Matt Wood, 36, added: 'The world is going mad... Essex Police need to get a grip and get on with arresting people for committing real crimes.'
The force is under financial pressure, needing to cut over £60 million from its budget, and has recently enlisted 95 driving instructors to act as 'eyes and ears' for crime prevention. Similar incidents have been recorded elsewhere: Greater Manchester Police investigated a threat to petrol bomb a Facebook friend referred to as an 'anorexic ginger bitch,' and Hertfordshire Constabulary probed messages calling a woman a 'fat ginger ****'.
Simply Red singer Mick Hucknall has previously compared discrimination against redheads to racism, urging people to replace 'ginger' with 'black' or 'Asian' to test societal reactions.
