A few months ago, my boy-heart (age 20) and I (age 17) were walking to his house when we passed a group of about three guys his age hanging out across the street. When the recognized he was a boy, they started cat-calling and threatening to cut his hair.

More recently, I read a novel (Capt. Hook) where the same sentiment was found:

"And of course, his [James] long black curls, bombilating [bouncing] with each step he took, caused many to delight in the idea of shearing them from his head." - Capt. Hook: Adventures of a Notorious Youth, J.V. Hart, p. 11

Can anyone tell me what the deal is with this? Is it some sort of testosterone-fuelled power trip? Is it a holdover from when Westerners used to shear the long hair of the natives as part of the attempt to 'civilise' them? Is it a repressed sexual thing, like the short-haired male feels threatened by the confidence of a male with long hair?

Please help, I'm so confused!

~Melantha N.

But why does it happen? What does it mean?

(And he's a very pretty boy, and we were in a fairly bad neighborhood, but that isn't really the point)

But to them, that probably was the whole point.

Interesting points, Susan...

[QUOTE=Susan W]I've seen a particularly aggressive and violent guy I knew get ticked off when he thought someone was a pretty girl, then found out it was a guy with long hair, then realized he'd fancied a guy. 

-This is a very interesting point and it was mentioned in the book "Escape from Childhood" (by John Holt, a child liberationist like me). In it, he mentions the theory that men disapprove of other men with long hair because they have the habit of "sizing up" a girl, I.E. looking her over on sight to consider her from a sexual point of view, and get upset if they see a "longhair" and think him to be a girl.

My friend John is a Mexican American and around the late 70s, he had REAL long hair, like many of his friends. One day, a guy whistled at him from a car. It did not take too long for him to get a haircut after that.

It could also be that long haired guys often get pretty girls, and these other guys are too scared of how their friends will treat them to grow their own long, but are jealous and want pretty girls too. 

-This is news to me. We longhairs have an advantage with pretty girls? You hear so much about girls liking shaved heads, or at any rate a traditional short haircut on men. Please Susan, tell me more!

I guess that's one of my more masculine traits-- I actually do size up girls sexually when I first see them.  However, I don't get angry if I mistake a guy for a girl at first, only disappointed and maybe a bit embarrassed.  *shrugs*  But guys tend to be more violent/aggressive than girls in general, so the difference in reaction isn't surprising.  I think I have an easier time telling genders than most people, though-- unless it's one of those "guess the gender" contests where they're trying to fool people, I probably get it right some 98% of the time ^_^ .

I don't think it is as much of a power trip as jealousy over seeing someone outside of social norms.  I find that most people wish they were strong enough to step outside the box, but few are. 

Kuroneko pointed out she doesn't think it happens that much anymore.  As a professional musician, I have long hair.  I still get comments from passerbys whenever I am out in a crowd and not on stage or recognized for my persona.  My son also chooses to wear his hair long.  He plays basketball for a travelling youth team and gets teased constantly.  He understands that simple minds will always pick on people that don't accept traditional social norms.  Therefore, he continues to let it grow.  It's curious that the same ones that initially tease him, welcome him as "Nash" once they see him play and respect his skills. 

Society is cruel, uneducated and utterly fruitless.  Teach our children well, they are the future.