Attention all Edgars at Frederick High: get a new haircut.

For those not in the know, “the Edgars” are a recent subculture in the young Latino community. These boys are defined by their look: True Religion baggie jeans, black t-shirts, soccer jerseys, Nike Jordans, and their namesake haircut: a high bowl cut with intricate patterns shaved into the neckline.

The Edgar gets its name from the first of these haircuts to go viral. Puerto Rican barber Anthony Reyes posted a photo of a cut he gave a baseball fan who wanted a portrait of Seattle Mariner Edgar Ramirez shaved into the back of his head. The MLB shared the post on their official account, and the rest is history.

These “fashion choices” make a statement, but the reactions aren’t always good. Simply put, a lot of people think they look ugly.

“These haircuts are all over the place. Everyone wants an Edgar cut because of how popular it got, but I don’t think they realize that it doesn’t look good anymore and there are a lot more other haircuts they can do,” said freshman Lizbeth Hernandez.

It’s not just students that feel this way: guided study teacher Mr. Coon has lots of Edgars in his classes and said, “I don’t really get it. When I was in high school, only the dorky kids got bowl cuts, and that’s been true for a long time. It’s like Llyod in Dumb and Dumber or Moe from The Three Stooges: once upon a time, only fools would get that cut.”

According to the LA Times, the fact that Edgar cuts have been considered ugly for decades is why they’ve become popular. The Edgar look fits into a style movement called rasquachismo created by Mexican immigrants to the US and their first-generation children. Since most of those immigrating to the US were poor and didn’t have access to trendy new fashions, they would take affordable but unpopular fashions and make them popular. According to Smithsonian Magazine, rasquachismo is all about looking like the underdog, do-it-yourself styles, and making the most of what little is available.

“It’s what fits me the best and other haircuts don’t really fit me like this one does,” said freshman Miguel Flores. “I just like it and how it looks on me, so I chose it.”

There is a lot of pride in having an Edgar. These boys spend hours making sure their hair is just right and will even cut and shave one another’s hair, sometimes with rulers and other shape guides to make sure everything is perfectly symmetrical. They know more about hair products than some girls and are inspired to keep their hair clean (unlike some middle and high school boys).

The issue is that none of this makes the Edgar less ugly. This isn’t my opinion: the idea that its part of rasquachismo style proves that it’s considered ugly and unfashionable—that it’s something only an underdog with no money for a proper haircut would get.

But there are so many other haircuts these boys could choose that would look good on them. There are even cuts they can still do themselves: if they can pull off creating an Edgar, they can style a buzz cut, a side part, or a fade. While Edgars can choose what they do with their hair, they want to stick to the horrible haircut instead of choosing something nice.

Another issue is that all the Edgars have the same haircut. These boys have all become carbon copies of one another. If a haircut lets someone express who they are, by all means, they should go with the look and feel good. But the Edgars aren’t showing how unique they are. Instead, they are all trying to be the same person.

“It is really hard to tell [Edgars] apart because they all look the same,” freshman Melinda Yim said. She added that because it’s so hard to tell them apart that it’s hard to get to know them as individuals.

Unfortunately for these boys, the Edgar trend has died down. The Edgars I spoke to admitted that their social media posts of their latest cuts don’t get the same views as they once did. The Edgars are starting to diversify the look into fluffier and asymmetrical parts, which (let’s be honest) are really just baby steps toward a normal haircut. Edgar cuts are out and nice haircuts are in… especially if these boys want to impress girls.

Junior Maddie Roybal said, “I really didn’t get the whole Edgar haircut being in. I always thought it was bad, but if that’s how they want their hair to be, let it be.”

“It depends on how they style their hair and how it suits them. But if they don’t style it and it looks like it’s never done, then count me out,” Yim said.

Instead of Edgars, these boys should put their trimmers to work on making cuts that look good and better suit their personalities. If they want to show themselves off with their style, they should show themselves, not the same cookie cutter cut. It’s cool that they care about how they look. It’s cool that they’ve learned to give themselves haircuts. It’s cool that they have something that they are passionate about that brings them pride.

But the haircut itself? Not so cool. Change it up.

This story was originally published on Frederick Lantern on October 29, 2024.