From: jnomina@andy.bgsu.edu (A.P.K.)
Subject: Discrimination
Organization: Bowling Green State University B.G., Oh.
Distribution: usa
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 17:13:30 GMT


     Hi.  I'm in a bit of a predicament for a couple of reasons,
and I'm not sure what my response to the situation should be,
and besides, this might open up another thread of discussion (Oh
NO!!!)  <grin>

     I'm ex-military (for those who don't know me from Adam yet),
and when I returned to the States and Civilian life, I was quite
the Johnny Kleencut type.  I wasn't before the military, having
hair almost down to my waist (when wet) and listening to The
Rolling Stones and bad-mouthing the country.  Nice quote from
An Officer and a Gentleman, huh?  Anyway...

     When I returned to the States, I remained the Johnny Kleencut
type and started college.  Soon, however, I noticed a pattern.
I was frequently asked if I had drugs, wanted to party, etc,
although I considered myself to be the geeky type at that point.
I didn't get it.  So I started to make some observations.  I
want to shy away from generalizations, although what I'm about
to say may well sound like such.  DISCLAIMER: I know that as
a generalization, this isn't true for _everyone_, however, it
does seem to be a majority response.  It seems as though the
majority of heavy partiers around here are the Johnny Kleencut
types, if we're to go on looks.  They are the ones who can
afford to be doing drugs while in college.  They are the ones
least likely to be viewed as dopers.  They are the ones who can
blatently get away with it, and do.  This was not for me...

     Being a poor, starving college student with a mild past
of partying myself, and wanting nothing to do with that
life-style anymore, I decided to let my hair grow again.  When
viewed as being too poor to afford drugs, the questions stopped
rolling in my way nearly so much, thusly I'm able to avoid that
part of my past which I may still find to be a temptation from
time to time.  (And NO, I never did anything heavy in my
youth, but even smoking a little grass can be a temptation
during severely stressful times.)  Now I have longer hair
again, though no where nearly as long as it used to be.

     Jump to today...  I'm burnt out on school, having attended
three years now with absolutely no breaks (not really even between
semesters, having jobs and such.)  I have to take some time off
but I have to get a job if I'm to survive while "taking a break."
Some "break," huh?  Ah well.  So next week I have a job interview
lined up, and everyone keeps telling me that I simply HAVE to
get my haircut before I go in for an interview.  I don't have
any desire/intention of doing this, for two reasons.  One, I
have no desire to conform to the closet-druggie standard of
being a Johnny Kleencut look-a-like (which is a blatent farce
which I find disgusting.)  Not only that, but I view the
societal standard of men having to be clean cut to be sexual
discrimination against men.  No, I've no intention of wanting
to wear makeup and earings and skirts next!  I keep myself
shaved and my hair clean and combed and I'm no dirtbag or
anything.  But forcing men to conform to the standard of having
hair kept exceptionally short, and then perhaps not being
hired on the grounds of being a "longhaired maggot infested
freak of nature" (to quote Rush) is a form of sexual
discrimination, is it not?  Not only that, but it's too
reminiscent of the way Hillary Clinton conformed to the standards
of being a "preppy-type" just in order to further her husband's
cause of running for president.  It would almost sicken me
to lower myself to such a standard just to get a much needed
job.

     Hopefully, my predicament is fairly clear at this point.
Is it considered sexual discrimination not to be hired on the
grounds of having longer hair than is deemed appropriate?  Am
I correct in asserting myself in such a manner, or should I
conform to the standards of this society?  Couldn't it be
considered a form of stereotyping that warrents such behavior
against me on the mere grounds of length of hair?  I mean,
I'd pass any drug test, I've nothing to hide.  I only grew my
hair long again to avoid the temptation which just 15 years
ago came from the opposite direction of HAVING longer hair.
Well, any comments or such are obviously being solicited, so
would be most welcome.

Jim

Xref: sparky alt.rush-limbaugh:12656 alt.politics.clinton:19370