If you have a tattoo would it bother you?

[The Mystery Machine]

Well I was going to get a tattoo but now I have lymphedema, so not sure if I will be able to anymore. Grrr.

 

[TheDisneyNurse]

Not at all. I love sharing the meaning behind my tattoos

 

[jahber]

I just wanted to chime in and say I can't believe people have the audacity to think they can touch someone's tattoo without permission! Insane. As an introvert, I don't usually ask about tattoos, although I've admired them, but the idea of someone thinking a tattoo is a license to touch? No. And it wouldn't occur to me to not hire someone solely because they have a tattoo. What an odd line to draw in the sand in this day and age. Many (most?) of the people I know have a tattoo, visible or hidden. And if it's hidden, then I probably don't know about it anyway.

 

[MrJT]

When I was young, tattoos were kind of rare. Maybe you'd meet a military guy with one, but they certainly weren't something you'd see every day. Especially on women. Now, they are quite common. In this day and age, I don't see how you could not hire somebody, solely on the fact of having one.
I recently hit 45, and I spent the afternoon of my birthday getting my first one done. I'm already planning on next years birthday.

 

[JediBonas]

Here you go! And yes, definitely do the leg piece! I have the duel from the orginal ROTJ poster on my shoulder and Anakin/Obi-Wan from ROTS on my leg.

AMAZING!! As much as I would love a big piece I can't due to a ton of potentially pre-cancerous freckles all over, so I have to be very cautious of how much skin I get covered in ink now

This is my (much smaller) Star Wars tattoo:

 

[FayeW]

My friends know how I feel about tattoos so we have a "don't ask/don't tell" policy. They don't ask me what I think, and I don't tell them. I

 

[Starshine]

AMAZING!! As much as I would love a big piece I can't due to a ton of potentially pre-cancerous freckles all over, so I have to be very cautious of how much skin I get covered in ink now

This is my (much smaller) Star Wars tattoo:View attachment 175527

That's awesome! And I completely understand, my artist will not tattoo over any freckles at all.

 

[Starshine]

I just wanted to chime in and say I can't believe people have the audacity to think they can touch someone's tattoo without permission! Insane. As an introvert, I don't usually ask about tattoos, although I've admired them, but the idea of someone thinking a tattoo is a license to touch? No.

I actually had one lady grab my arm and start twisting it this way and that to try to see the ink better. It was bizarre!! Take all the pictures you want, I'll gladly move my arm about, but eeeeew with the touchy feely if I don't know you!

 

[bcla]

When I was young, tattoos were kind of rare. Maybe you'd meet a military guy with one, but they certainly weren't something you'd see every day. Especially on women. Now, they are quite common. In this day and age, I don't see how you could not hire somebody, solely on the fact of having one.
I recently hit 45, and I spent the afternoon of my birthday getting my first one done. I'm already planning on next years birthday.

Perhaps about 20% of the adult population has tattoos.

When it comes to many types of employment, there are typically more qualified applicants than positions. Excluding applicants with visible tattoos won't likely mean not being able to hire qualified employees. A subconscious or even conscious bias can certainly happen, and it's not illegal to discrimate against those with tattoos.

I remember reading about some tattoo artists who refused to put ink in places where it couldn't be covered up. I remember a HS teacher who had a tattoo on his hand. When asked, he said there were some things that he wished he never did. This was before laser removal was common, so I suppose he considered having it removed. It wasn't big though - just some initials.

 

[DisneyHardin]

My DH is a police officer and he has a badge with a blue line across it tattooed on his chest where his badge would be when he has his uniform on. The only person who has ever said anything about it was a little old lady at the beach a couple years ago who asked him if he was in a gang. We got the biggest laugh from that and I still joke with him about his gang.

 

[bcla]

My DH is a police officer and he has a badge with a blue line across it tattooed on his chest where his badge would be when he has his uniform on. The only person who has ever said anything about it was a little old lady at the beach a couple years ago who asked him if he was in a gang. We got the biggest laugh from that and I still joke with him about his gang.

The oddest one I heard of was the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which is the largest of its kind in the country. They have several "police gangs" which include tattoos. One was "998" (officer involved shooting) and another had a gun in the motif. If the officer had shot a weapon on duty, they would have a smoke plume added the gun.

 

[tigercat]

I wouldn't have thought to touch someone's tattoo. Did not even enter my mind.
tigercat

 

[DSMVP]

I have 8 tattoos and each one has special meaning and I love when people ask me about them! I love talking about my tattoos and tattoos in general. I am 40 and got my first one at 39. The only negative commets I ever get are from my mom. She hates them. I don't have any pictures, just quotes and lyrics and mostly in places I can cover up. But I do see a few more in my future.

 

[MolonLabe]

As a professional and a small business owner visible tattoos don't bother me as a rule.

That said, front / side neck and face tats are in a class by themselves. There is also something said about what the ink says/represents. I.e. racist tats or vulgarity would be a dis-qualifier.

I am happy to say most companies are changing their policies on visible ink.

It's a small and narrow mind that sees ink and becomes judgemental.

 

[nanienamou]

I have a semicolon tattoo on the wrist. It has a special meaning and the movement behind it is getting pretty big.

http://www.projectsemicolon.org/

I have no problem explaining the meaning when people ask about it, as it serves also to reduce stigma associated with mental illness.

I love seeing people's tattoos and learning the meaning behind them.

 

[disney world dreamer]

i have 4 tattoos.
i would not be upset if someone asked me about them.

as far as the person on the other board saying they would not hire someone with tattoos... well guess what sir? you wouldn't even know i have tattoos as they are only visible when i want them to be so i'd be laughing all the way to the bank because in fact you did hire a person with multiple tattoos.

 

[damskipi13]

I don't have a tattoo and won't be getting one. On another one of my boards someone posted that tattoos are really bad and he wouldn't hire anyone who had one. Now I see people all the time who have tattoos and have talked to a couple about their tattoos. I have heard some very interesting stories and thoughts put into their tattoos. But now I wonder if me asking them about their tattoos were not the thing to do. I am just really interested in them. I am not upset by them just interested. Should I not be asking?
tigercat

Definitely ask! I love when people show interest. It's when people look at the tattoo, look at my face, look back at the tattoo, then shake their head and walk away that I get annoyed. My tattoos are tasteful and incredibly meaningful to me, and I put a lot of care and thought into the design and maintenance of them. I am not in general a creative person so this is how I express that part of myself.

Also, I bet that guy has hired plenty of people with tattoos. In the US, the estimate is that ~1/4 of adults have tattoos. Odds are if you've hired more than a few people, you've hired someone with tattoos. Now, I work in an extremely conservative field and tattoos are very regulated, but it's well known that many people have them. You can't see mine unless I'm either in a bikini, or I'm wearing a top with cutouts in specific positions. I'm thinking about getting two more that will be visible in tank tops, but that's still not something I would ever wear at work.

@tigercat this photo says it all really, doctor dressed professionally, but has tattoos

This photo is from a magazine article I was going to reference. It's a few years old and I think it might have been in Time? Anyway, the article was about the stigma of tattoos and how many professionals have them but you'd never know if you met them at work. Tattoos don't mean someone is incompetent.

 

[damskipi13]

I have a semicolon tattoo on the wrist. It has a special meaning and the movement behind it is getting pretty big.

http://www.projectsemicolon.org/

I have no problem explaining the meaning when people ask about it, as it serves also to reduce stigma associated with mental illness.

I love seeing people's tattoos and learning the meaning behind them.

I know several people with this tattoo. Good for you.

 

[ElsieAstronaut]

Luckily I haven't run into any employers that had issues at all with my visible tattoos. I have 12 all together, two that are basically my entire upper arm. I also have the back of my neck and both wrists. So, in my work shirt with my hair up, I have 5 visible.

I don't mind talking about them at all. I have the mindset that if I didn't want people to notice them I shouldn't have gotten them. I've had tattoos for 10 years now, and in all that time i've had ONE negative remark, from an older man. Beyond that, I get compliments almost daily from people of all walks of life. The stigma is definitely dying.

That said, I have had people think my tattoos are something that need to be touched. It's not OK at all, and I don't understand the mindset. It's like...what do you expect them to feel like? Have you felt human skin before? Because that's what they feel like. I've had my arms grabbed, rotated, poked, prodded...i just don't get it.

 

[bcla]

Also, I bet that guy has hired plenty of people with tattoos. In the US, the estimate is that ~1/4 of adults have tattoos. Odds are if you've hired more than a few people, you've hired someone with tattoos. Now, I work in an extremely conservative field and tattoos are very regulated, but it's well known that many people have them. You can't see mine unless I'm either in a bikini, or I'm wearing a top with cutouts in specific positions. I'm thinking about getting two more that will be visible in tank tops, but that's still not something I would ever wear at work.

A lot of actors have tattoos, but in general they've found ways to cover them up or even edit them out using technology. I mean - on screen I haven't seen the tattoos of Megan Fox, Angelina Jolie, or even Melissa Benoist (Supergirl).