Victorian Government advertisements poking fun at redheads have provoked a rush of complaints to human rights and advertising authorities.

The online ads use foul language to discourage people from talking on the phone while driving.

The Human Rights Commission says the ads could cause people with red hair to be targeted by bullies and the Advertising Standards Bureau has issued the government agency behind the ads with a “please explain” request.

The Victorian Government describes its latest road safety campaign as progressive but there are concerns some of the ads may be a step backwards for people with red hair.

An excerpt from an advertisement reads: “Every time you use your mobile phone whilst driving, gingers get fresh with other gingers. Don’t be a dickhead. Don’t use your phone.

“Using your phone whilst driving may or may not result in gingers getting fresh.”

Another reads: “Every time you use a mobile phone whilst driving, a redhead gets its wings.”

Melbourne woman and redhead Virginia is worried the ad may provoke more discrimination.

“It may plant a prejudice in someone’s mind. There is a specific undertone here to encourage people to form a prejudice,” she said.

High volume

Victoria’s human rights commissioner, Dr Helen Szoke, says the ads have prompted more than 20 complaints so far, most of those immediately after the ads were publicised.

She says that is an unusual number of complaints.

“The whole purpose of these adverts is to try to impact on behaviour,” she said.

“Our concern is that the behaviour that is being targeted may not be the one that is impacted on and we have to be really careful that there aren’t unintended consequences when we run these social marketing ads.

“It would be a shame if a very worthy cause had the unintended consequence of actually resulting in people with particular physical characteristics being the subject of teasing or bullying or … being made fun of.”

Dr Szoke believes the adverts should be pulled.

“It is very unusual for so many people on one day to ring about one particular issue to the commission and that would suggest to us that there is enough concern that the ads need to be revisited,” she said.

Despite Dr Szoke’s concern, the Human Rights Commission is powerless to act because the ads do not come under its jurisdiction.

But the government agency which put the ads online may be pressured to reconsider them.

The head of the Advertising Standards Bureau, Fiona Jolly, says many people have been offended by the language used in the ads and there have also been complaints from people with red hair.

“We take our complaints to the board and if they feel that the advertisement does amount to discrimination, then that is an issue that we would raise with the advertiser,” she said.

“[We would] try to negotiate with them to modify the advertisement or to withdraw the offensive advertisement.”

Gone viral

Late last year, people with red hair were targeted by a joke on the TV show South Park, which inspired an online campaign calling for a “kick a ginger” day in the US.

There is little anyone can do to retrieve the Victorian Government ads now they have spread online but the Government was hoping that was exactly what would happen.

The campaign relies on being interesting enough to be spread by the online community.

Roads Minister Tim Pallas says all of the ads were tested by experts.

“The psychology advisory group were shown all the ads and those that they believed were acceptable for the purposes of promulgation have been used,” he said.

“There were many others that didn’t make the cut, I can assure you.”

The Minister’s spokesman said the Government expected the ads to be controversial and there were no plans to withdraw them.