PORTLAND, Ore. – For a little while, everybody in Pioneer Courthouse Square was seeing red on Saturday .
Red hair, that is. Lots and lots of red hair. Maybe more red hair than anybody’s seen in one place at one time.
Organizers said around 1,600 people showed up to attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of people with naturally red hair.
“I’m really proud of being able to bring a bunch of like-minded and like-appearance people together,” said organizer Rusty Weise. “They have felt so outcast, but now they are with their brethren, their own kind.”
Everybody who showed up Saturday had to bring childhood pictures to prove they were a natural redhead.
The world record experts at Guinness will review the record attempt and make a final decision in a few months.
Less than two percent of the world’s population has red hair. In some cases, it seems to come out of nowhere.
“We didn’t even think they were our kids,” said Monica Wheeler, who showed up with her twins. “We asked, are you sure these are ours?
“When they throw tantrums, it’s scary… someone told me I can blame it on the red hair.”
In other cases, it’s just part the family identity.
Three generations of the Poirier family showed up, including David Poirier.
“It’s sort of unusual because a lot of times you’re the only redhead around,” he said. “So it’s neat to see all of us together in one place, celebrating our uniqueness I guess.”
From www.komonews.com
