How is society changing its opinions on people with tattoos?
When it comes to tattoos, societal views are split. People either love them or hate them, but society has begun a progression towards full-fledged acceptance.
As a very brief history, (maybe I’ll go further in a different post) in the very early ages tattoos were marks for spiritual healing, Sailors got tattoos to mark their stops are different seaports, and eventually criminal and gang members used them to group themselves. The criminal era of tattoos started it’s rise in the 1930s. In 1972, a study found that prisoners with felony charges had more tattoos than those with only misdemeanors.
So where has it gone from there? Well, it seems society has eased up on the stigma that comes with having tattoos and being associated with criminal activity, but it still is deemed unprofessional. Most companies have some sort of limitation when it comes to body modifications including tattoos, which used to be having tattoos showing at all, but has since been moved to no tattoos from the neck up, as those areas are still stigmatized, and maybe rightfully so.
In a more modern sense, people get tattoos to seek originality and express themselves. Generally, tattoos are becoming a part of pop culture, more and more young adults are getting tattoos. This generation of Americans are the most accepting and diverse generation of all time, so of course that doesn’t stop at tattoos. No longer are tattoos exclusive to thugs and criminals, if they don’t step on any toes, there’s no reason to have a problem with it. At the end of the day, it’s just expression.
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