Hairy tales and gender troubles: Conceptualizing haircutting as an act of feminist resistance

This paper discusses the significance of hair as a gendered symbol, particularly exploring the act of haircutting as a form of feminist resistance against the cisgender and heteronormative norms shaping much of social and organizational life. It does so by employing the autoethnographic reflections of the three authors, revealing embodied and social implications of haircutting decisions for different intersectional bodies. By shedding light on hair, a highly understudied aspect of gendered embodiment, this paper contributes to discussions on gendered (dis)embodiment – namely hair-policing organizational norms and responses to these – and feminist resistance in organizations, conceptualizing haircutting as a performative act of feminist resistance rooted in solidarity and relationality across intersectional differences. Doing so, the paper expands the understanding of feminist resistance beyond organized protest to everyday embodied practices. Methodologically, it surfaces collaborative writing as a feminist relational process, fostering solidarity across different intersectional and vulnerable bodies.