In June 2012, a female-led protest took place in front of the West Virginia State Capitol where participants shaved their heads to protest the environmental and community health damages caused by Mountaintop Removal Mining.
The protesters shaved their heads in strong condemnation, their hair scattered on the steps symbolizing how mining removes the land’s original vegetation, leaving it bare. From a distance, the mountain resembled a bald head stripped of its hair. This visual act of protest, which uses the body and silence, draws global attention to unheard demands while also challenging traditional stereotypes of the female body and beauty.
This photograph was taken by female photographer Ami Vitale in 2012. She is one of National Geographic's prominent female photographers and also a journalist, documentary filmmaker, and writer, with a focus on war, climate change, and environmental conservation. In this photo, she captured these brave women who sacrificed their hair to convey the message, “What are you willing to give up from your body to raise awareness of the harm being done to the land?”
The women chose silence and shaved their heads, turning “silence” into a powerful rhetorical tool. It showcased how women use their bodies to force the public and policymakers to face issues of environmental and labor exploitation. When words failed, women used their bodies as tools to create the possibility of change. Eventually, more people, regardless of gender, joined the protest.
