How much does your hairstyle say about who you are? To ask some, it would speak volumes. To ask others, they would say it has little to do with how you identify yourself.

I think this styling dilemma hits especially close to home for women. It has long been said that long hair is the staple of femininity, and choosing to wear your hair short means you are masculine, butch, and, of course, a lesbian. There could not possibly be any other explanation.

I am one of those women who wears her hair short. Very short, actually. I am not a lesbian, I am not masculine, and I am not "butch" by any means. I wear my hair short simply because it does not look good long. I wear my hair very short because it is easier to take care of that way. I have had to endure endless stereotyping, with rumors whirling about me regarding my sexuality, I have been passed up for dates and social activities, all because how I choose to wear my hair does not align with how people think I ought to be wearing it.

This seems very backwards in our supposedly progressive society. Women have had to fight very hard to have rights that are almost equal to what a man has, yet it seems we have not earned our right to wear our hair short if we want to without enduring painful social stigma because of it. Our careers, politics, and payscale all seem very 2008. However, people's true feelings on how women are defined never becomes more clear than when an otherwise feminine woman chooses to wear her hair short, and those feelings often harken back to the 1800's.

I remember when I first started wearing my hair short. It was about three years ago, and at 30 years old, I had finally accepted that I was not meant to have long hair. I had always been complimented on my appearance, I always had people asking me for fashion and makeup tips, and I was considered every bit the feminine woman. Until that fateful day I got my hair cut short. Very short. Then, the rumors began to swirl. Since I have always been choosy about who I date, and I now had short hair, a couple of people began spreading the gossip that perhaps I was actually a lesbian. Men who once expressed an interest in me began to overlook me as a viable woman, because my hair was short. I was no longer considered delicate, feminine, and beautiful. Cutting a few inches off my hair had in all ways changed my life.

I am a little older now, and a bit more thick skinned than I was back then. I have come to accept that some people are ignorant, and cannot think beyond the notions of stereotypes and outdated social structures. I proudly wear my hair short, always styling it so it looks chic and feminine. I realize that having short hair means I won't get all the attention I could be getting from men, but the men who do take the time to get to know me beyond my short hair are never disappointed with what they find. In fact, any man who would not date a woman based on the length of her hair is probably not the kind of man I want to be with anyway. I know who I am, and I am not defined by the rumors, social oversights, and piggish stereotypes asssigned to me because of my short hair.

Finding the style that is right for you goes beyond finding the style that best frames your face. It truly is about finding the style that best fits who you are at heart, so you can tell the world a bit about yourself with just one glance.

Learn more about this author, Stephanie Mccown.
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