One of the hardest thing for a parent to do is watch their child be bullied by their peers. That’s why Lauren Russell was heartbroken when her 3 year-old son Noah asked her why he had “horrible” red hair after he was bullied for his ginger features.

Lauren, 24, had boarded a bus with her little boy when a group of teenagers began making fun of his red hair, saying things like,  “I would hate my child to be ginger, I would kill it” and “All kids with ginger hair should go straight to social services.” Noah was so upset by the comments that he asked why he could not be blonde like his older brother, Charlie, who told his little brother that his red hair is “beautiful.”

Noah was still devastated by the comments, and Lauren fired back in a viral Facebook post in which she let her outrage be known.

“He hasn’t stopped asking me why people don’t like his hair. He asked me if I could change it for him so people will like it. I can feel my heart breaking every time he asks me,” she wrote. “It isn’t okay to bully somebody for their hair colour, not now. Not ever.

“This has had such an effect on Noah, it’s just unfair. I have naturally ginger hair too and I remember being bullied growing up, but not as young as three,” the distraught mother continued. “Noah’s now really aware of his hair colour and thinks it’s horrible. He doesn’t understand why he isn’t blond like his siblings. I couldn’t believe these spiteful teenagers could upset my son like that.”

The post has since received over 18,000 likes, and support has come in for Noah from all over the globe. Many have suggested that Noah look up to people like Ed Sheehan and Prince Harry as his red-headed idols! Lauren said that the words of support have completely changed Noah’s outlook on his hair.

“Since sharing what happened on Facebook, I’ve had hundreds of people messaging me from the UK, all showing support and saying how gorgeous Noah is. When I read all the nice comments to him, his face was priceless,” she said. “I hope he’ll be able to forget the nasty remarks now, but I still want an apology from the teenage boy. I’ve already contacted the high school he goes to so that he can say sorry to Noah in person.”

We find it sickening that a 3 year-old child was treated this way, but we’re so glad that he’s getting the support he deserves! SHARE this story if you are firmly against bullying!