It may have not hindered Ronald McDonald's career—or Chris Evans' for that matter—but being a red-headed British boy is nothing short of a nightmare for Tyler Walsh.
The flame-haired 12-year-old from Bristol has been bullied to such an extent that his school recently recommended he be taught in isolation. All because of his hair colour. And that's not the only ginger-related discrimination going on...
Tyler's mother Emma, not surprisingly, found the suggestion abhorrent. "Tyler is effectively being bullied out of school for being red-headed," she said. "It should be the bullies who are excluded from school, not their victim."
She admits that Tyler has been bullied from the minute he started secondary school. In one incident he was even chased into the street, where he was punched and kicked by a gang of boys. The police were called to the scene. They admonished the bullies, yet they appeared in class the next day.
Then the bullying was worse than ever.
After Yate International Academy suggested he be kept apart from the other children, his outraged mom pulled Tyler son out of the school.
"It is not fair that Tyler should be bullied out of school. He wants to learn and has been getting excellent grades," said 33-year-old Ms Walsh. "Yate International Academy has punished one boy, when a whole group were involved. I think it is absolutely disgusting."
Disgusting, for sure. Clearly this school, and many others like it, needs to brush up on its anti-bullying policy. Ms Walsh plans to take the matter up with the Academy principal, Roger Gilbert and with the education watchdog, Ofsted.
What, in your opinion, is the most effective strategy for schools to follow in bullying cases such as this? Know of any success stories firsthand?
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