Over 5,000 people joined a Facebook group inspired by an episode of South Park that encouraged people to “Kick a Ginger” on National Kick A Ginger Day 2008.
Following a recent episode of the controversial cartoon South Park where fat character Cartman calls all people with red hair “soulless and evil” a 14 year old boy from Vancouver Canada started the Facebook group and saw it’s popularity rocket with thousands joining.
National Kick A Ginger Day was held on Thursday 20th November, and despite school teachers and parents pleading with gingerists to ignore the Facebook site, ginger children around the globe have reported being kicked and slapped that day by their peers.
Many people reported their attacks on the Facebook group page, boasting how they “kicked a ginger”.
The creator of the Facebook group, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has apologised to all gingers claiming it was only meant as a joke. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police however are investigating the situation as a “hate crime”.
“We do treat this sort of thing seriously,” a police spokeswoman told the Vancouver Sun newspaper. “This is sort of inciting hate. It’s a hate crime, really.”
This week is Canada’s bullying awareness week.
In retaliation to the campaign several opposing Facebook groups have been created with names ranging from the imaginatively titled “Don’t Kick A Ginger Day” with 16 members, to the slightly less impressive “kick a ginger day is predigest and stupid” with just 6 members, who are likely bad spellers.
