My experience of this, as a ginger person born in Ireland, is that the prejudice is consciously ironic, and in general harmless, has nevertheless conditioned people in the UK to view red-hair as low-status. The result is that people who probably would have been bullied anyway have their hair color picked on if it's red. I've also overheard completely un-ironic statements from women, generally of the more superficially status loving sort, that they would never go out with a red haired man. So while the acid throwing is probably anomalous, the point about people's failure to compartmentalize isn't. The difference in germany is massive. Which is rather gratifying.

Although I have to give some consideration to the possibility that the complexion that comes packaged with my hair color is just genuinely unattractive. People in Colombia thought I was ill.