AN inspiring woman who lost her hair due to an auto-immune condition has said “words can be violence” too following a comedian’s awards ceremony insult.
Laura Mathias, 30, from Manningtree, has had alopecia since she was 13-years-old and now shares her experiences on social media in a bid to break the stigma.
Throughout her life she has hidden her hair loss by wearing wigs but is now gradually finding the courage to embrace her condition.
Naturally then, she was left mortified when Chris Rock made a joke during this year’s Oscars event at the expense of Jada Pinkett Smith, who also has alopecia.
The presenter made a reference to a film called G.I Jane in which the lead character shaves her head before her husband Will Smith slapped the stand-up across the face.
Laura said: “What a horrible incident, making any kind of comment about her lack of hair is bullying - it was her choice not to hide her hair loss and she looked amazing.
“Words can be violence and we don’t know the impact they have on the people around us and how difficult it has been behind closed doors.
“Jada is the victim here and more than anything she is what this should all be about – it seems it has been really hard work to get the alopecia part of this spoken about.”
Laura now fears some people with alopecia may find themselves overwhelmed by the volume of coverage the incident is receiving.
Although Chris Rock’s joke has not been well received, Laura has also said laughter can be a lifeline for those with the condition.
“It’s about reading the room, but humour is a really important tool and has been for me in terms of dealing with alopecia, especially as an awkward teenager,” she said.
“But that was me making self-deprecating jokes as a way of dealing with it - it’s completely different as soon as someone [else jokes about it] – even a friend.
“Being completely bald in public is still really uncomfortable for me and I have poked fun at myself and my baldness to get there before someone else does.
“But I would love to feel confident enough where it wasn’t a massive stigma and taboo and I had not had to develop this coping mechanism.”
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