Portrait Of The Sleep Deprived

laurenperalta:

teeenage-anarchist:

Body modifications do not change a person’s education, worth, much less their feelings, but people keep pointing their finger. This is a form of art and personal expression. It’s their body and their life; you shouldn’t judge!

I agree and disagree. Tattoos are part of mainstream society now. Most people you meet on the street have at least one tattoo, even if it’s small. But there is, and will be (for a period of time) a negative association with tattoos in the workplace. Not everyone will be comfortable with your tattoos. A lot of people find them intimidating. Imagine yourself in a doctor’s office, already nervous and intimidated, only to be probed and prodded by someone heavily tattooed if you’ve never been tattooed or grew up during a time when tattoos were taboo. It’s not always about professionalism, and it’s not that people are always questioning whether tattoos mean someone is uneducated or unqualified to do their job. It’s sometimes about comfort. I’m a heavily tattooed person, and I’m making this statement. It’s always a good idea to place yourself in someone else’s shoes and imagine what they might be feeling.

This is not to say that I don’t encourage tolerance in the workplace for tattooed people. It would be nice one day to not have to worry about applying for a job and covering my tattoos. But I do understand why it isn’t always tolerated now.

Ack, I know this is asking for trouble…

Firstly, tattoos are nowhere near mainstream.  In the UK estimates are that around 15% of people have tattoos, with a huge majority of those being under 30.  They are still only really present in a couple of relatively small subcultures, and even in those they’re only become commonplace in the last 5-10 years.  I’ve been involved in various alternative scenes for 15+ years, and none of my jobs have been in white-collar environments, yet I still only know a handful of people with tattoos.  It may have over-taken the left-handers and left us gingers in the dust, but it’s still a minority thing next to piercings and omnipotent sky-beings.

But the really stupid thing with this is the original post.  The dude in the photo has quite clearly taken the decision not to get tattooed above the collar or below the cuff - it’s a deliberate measure to make sure he can cover all his work should he want to.  No one meeting him in his professional capacity would judge him for his tattoos (assuming he is actually a doctor) because they wouldn’t see them - and that’s the end of the argument:  if you choose to do something to your body that makes it stand out, you can’t complain when people then focus on it.  If you’re worried what people will think, or you think it may affect your job, make sure you can hide it.  Don’t get it done and then play the victim.  Complaining about it retrospectively puts the blame entirely on the tattoo-ee.

That’s not to say I think it’s right to discriminate against them.  I’ve been told several times in job interviews that I would have to shave my beard off if I wanted the position - yet if I followed certain religions, it would be illegal for them to even suggest it.

And saying all that, I don’t really think it’s an issue.  Considering how many times I’ve seen articles from people with tattoos saying it is a problem, I’ve never seen one from anyone without tattoos saying the same - not in the ‘papers, not in business journals, not in blogs.  I have seen a couple of anti-piercing articles, but never an anti-tattoo one.  Of the people I do know with tattoos, one has a body suit from neck to wrist to ankle; he’s a lawyer and he’s in the TA (a bit like the National Guard), and he just covers up when he has to.  His girlfriend has a back-piece and two full sleeves and works in a hospital, and she’s never even been asked to cover hers.

Honestly, I think it’s more of an issue in the heads of the tattooed than it is in the real world.  Comfirmation bias is a hard thing to argue against though.

Posted 7 months ago — 44,571 notes