I wonder too. It's the second time I've heard that phrase this week.

In the old days it was not understood that red hair is a recessive trait, and that two brown-haired parents could easily have a red-haired child if an ancestor on each side was a redhead.

I've always understood the expression to mean the mistreatment or neglect of certain people as though they are not wanted or important.

I'll link the Urban Dictionary listing below:

Here is a link that might be useful: urban dictionary explanations

Thanks petaloid for the link/explanation. Makes me shudder to think, though...

My father came from a family of dark Irish. Everyone in his immediate family were short and very dark, thick bushy eyebrows etc. In the middle of this family of two sisters and a brother, is my dad. Tall lanky, and crazy red hair and freckles! Oh my! I've never seen pictures, but was told he favors his grandfather. No one in my immediate family received these genes. We are all very bland...lol
so...we heard the "red headed step child" phrase often

In the culture I lived in as a child, the term insinuated that the father of the redhead was not the husband. The same was applied to a dark haired child of two light haired parents; Never mind that the child may have been similar to one of his grandparents.

I found this online; interesting information here!

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-redheaded-stepchild.htm

Remember Saturday Night Live's Farkle Family? That is what they mean. Jemdandy explains it politely.

Don't know but at Lauren's high school they have a red-headed club. It's a diversity club and Lauren's a member. She has several red-headed friends and some are in the club. You don't have to be red-headed to be in the club, by-the-way.

In the last while, there have been news items where red-heads are being bullied.

Bullying has really gotten to be so serious and out-of hand.
Girl bullying is prevalent.

Anything that makes a student stand out seems to be a victim.
So sad. What are the bullies going to be like as adults?

Until the "Too many posts".....post, I had never heard that saying. Hubs is one of 8 kids, 6 inherited the dark hair and dark eyes from their Indian grandmother 1 was blondish & blue eyes, and Hubs had red hair, blue eyes and freckles. Our daughter got red hair & blue eyes like her Dad and our boys both had dark hair brown eyes, Me? The hair is now gray, but used to be what ever color on the hair dye box that struck my fancy, with grown/green eyes.

The Farkle family was from Laugh-In.
Sock it to me.

When I was a kid, the parents of friends had brown hair and brown eyes. 3 kids all had brown hair/eyes, and the third came out as a blond and blue eyes. Apparently someone in their lineage had that, and it showed up a generation or 2 later......

I've heard of the phrase but I've never experienced red heads getting bullied! In my social circles, natural redheads are envied for being unique and having pretty hair. :) But, then again I'm a brunette so I suppose you never really know what people are going through.

Chi, none of us have experienced the bullying kids get now. With the internet, it's 24/7. Shameful.

I've heard the phrase, but I haven't heard of the bullying of red headed children either. Every generation of my family has had at least one red head so we know where it comes from. I gave birth to two redheads although dd is now more of a strawberry blond. I love red hair. I think it is absolutely beautiful. My children are really cute and have lots of friends. DS#2 has hair that is almost a coppery orange. I always have a chuckle because people -kids and adults- go out of their way to touch his hair. It gets ds noticed, but not necessarily in a bad way.

I never heard that expression. My husband is a natural red head. When he was a kid he was called "Howdy Doody" by the other kids. Red hair and freckles,get it? He's all gray now.(He's 65 after all) I have a female friend who had natural red hair but now has a lot of white/gray and dyes it red. it looks absolutely fake! I'd never tell her-she thinks it looks nice and natural on her.

"...beat you like a red-headed stepchild!" I think the first time I heard that was in a movie, possibly The Wraith?

(As I understand) my great-grandmother always used to say "Pine trees and red hair won't grow in good soil". I assumed it from the Scandinavian area probably not too crazy about the Irish.

All these phrases seem to have died down, possibly with Prince Harry becoming popular?

I read about the South Park show starting the bullying of redheads with a plot that beat up a kid for having red hair. After that, there were incidents reported of kids with red hair being targets for teasing in the USA and UK. It is crazy how some dumb show can cause that kind of hazing.