For 10 years, I lived with my stepfather, who was incredibly abusive towards me, my brother, and my mother. He was the head sensei, a black belt who owned his own martial arts dojo. He often abused students who attended his gym, but always got away with it due to his charming, yet intimidating nature. There are many abusive things he did that stick in my mind, but one incident stands out from the rest.

There was a teenage boy who attended the gym. He was tall, lanky, and kind of nerdy. He also had a full head of poofy, curly hair. Everyone made fun of him for his big hair, including my stepfather, who often instigated the bullying. One day, my stepfather and one or two other black belts (both of whom were adults) pinned the boy down and used an electric razor to shave off all his hair. They laughed at him while he yelled and told them to let him go. The boy left the gym that day and never returned.

Since then, I have noticed other abusers in my life and in the news that shave their victim’s hair, and I am noticing a trend. Is shaving one’s head considered abuse? Where does it come from, and why does it happen?

Nazi Germany

The biggest incidence of head shaving occurred during the Holocaust. Jews who were taken to concentration camps were stripped of their clothing and had their hair shorn off. Jacek Nowakowski, part of the Content Committee of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, stated that, “Hair is a highly personal matter. It is not only part of the human body; it is also a part of the human personality – part of one’s identity.” In shaving off the victims’ hair, the Nazis stripped away any sense of identity and personhood they carried. This is just one of the ways that the Nazis tortured their victims.

Stanford Prison Experiment

The Stanford Prison Experiment was a social experiment done to investigate the psychological effects on those with power, and those without. Several volunteers participated in the study and were placed in either the prisoner group or the prison guard group based on a coin flip. The results of the experiment showed the true darkness within the human mind.

The experiment had its own version of head shaving. The guards had to perform a “degradation procedure” in which each prisoner was stripped naked, deloused with spray, and dressed in a smock. A stocking was placed on the prisoners’ heads as a substitute for head shaving. According to their website (prisonexp.org), “the process of having one’s head shaved, which takes place in most prisons as well as in the military, is designed in part to minimize each person’s individuality.” This, along with other ways the prisoners were treated, completely dehumanized them and made them feel like animals.

Kelsey Johnson

There are similar stories to this in the news, but this story was both shocking and recent. In 2018, Kelsey Johnson’s mother, Cristin Johnson, treated Kelsey to a trip to the salon and allowed her to dye her hair. Afterwards, Kelsey visited her father, Schaffen Frederick, and returned home with no hair. Her long, beautiful hair had been chopped down to a pixie cut. Schaffen had been angry that Kelsey colored her hair and forced her to cut all of it off as punishment. Kelsey’s mother shared the story on Facebook, posting a photo of short-haired Kelsey crying and covering her face in embarrassment. The story went viral, as thousands of people said this was considered abusive. Cristin is now seeking legal action against Kelsey’s father.

Onision

The most recent case of head shaving comes from a YouTuber named Onision. Onision, named Greg Jackson, has over 2 million subscribers and has been named one of the “most controversial YouTubers.” Greg has been involved in many controversies and abuse allegations since he started his YouTube career in 2006. Recently, his former partners have come out about his abuse, though head shaving seems to be a common trend with many of them.

Shiloh Hoganson, a former partner of Greg’s, has recently come out with her story to the public. She appeared on an interview with Chris Hansen, talking about the abuse she endured during her relationship with Greg. In one graphic story, she tells about a time they were having sex. Prior to this, she had shaved one side of her head to mimic a famous music artist. While her and Greg were having sex, Greg paused and said that he wanted her to shave her head. They stopped, went into the bathroom, and he shaved her hair off before continuing to have sex with her. Afterwards, she is shown on the Onision YouTube channel acting as bald characters in parody skits. It is believed that Greg forced her to go on camera in order to humiliate her in front of his millions of watchers.

Billie Dawn Webb, another one of Greg’s love interests, threatened to shave her head after she got caught smoking marijuana. During an interview with Chris Hansen, Billie tells her story of her involvement with Greg. She had originally agreed to enter a relationship with Greg’s spouse, Kai Anderson, though the relationship quickly turned into a three-way relationship involving Greg, who pressured his way in. Greg soon asserted control over the then 18-year-old. He caught her smoking weed against his wishes, and sent her a series of texts describing her punishments. Among the punishments, Greg wanted Billie to shave her head, tattoo “I’m a liar” above her buttocks, and be chained up in his basement for a week.

Kai Anderson, Greg’s husband, is also a victim of head shaving – or, at least, a participant in Greg’s eerie obsession with shaven heads. Kai, a transgender male, posted a video to his channel of Greg shaving off his hair. Even though Kai wanted to shave off his hair, the video is still uncomfortable due to Greg’s pushy and controlling behavior. Greg continuously pressured Kai to shave off all his hair, despite Kai’s obvious nervousness about the situation.

Why Does This Happen?

As eloquently stated by Jacek Nowakowski, hair is an essential part of human identity. It is what makes you fit in with everyone else, or stand out from the rest. Without hair, a person loses a huge part of who they are. Having a bald head is incredibly embarrassing for most people, and the wait for the hair to grow back can take months, even years. Shaving a victim’s head is a way for an abuser to enforce their control and domination over their victim, and to further demean and weaken their victim through public humiliation and dehumanization. Shaving someone’s hair is an act of violence – it is a form of psychological and emotional abuse, and should not be taken lightly.