Imagine a man with tattoos all over his body. He walks around everyday with that ink on his body and can never take them off. What is your first impression of this man? A lot of people might question him and wonder why anyone would ever do that to their body. Some people might admire the tattoos and think they are cool. Some people might not even care. But now imagine a teenager with a tattoo. Not a full sleeve, but just one tattoo in a place that can be easily hidden by clothing. Some people might never even know they have a tattoo. Others might question that kid and his parents. They might wonder why anyone's parents would let their kid put something like that on their body.

When you hear the negatives about tattoos you always hear how they can never be removed and how they don't look good. You hear about how they're going to look bad when you get older and how they prevent you from getting a job. These are just some of the common negative views on tattoos. Many of the people that see tattoos and are against them don't know what they stand for. Many people get tattoos that resemble something they believe in, tell a story, or remember someone they have lost. I have a tattoo along with many people I know. Both of my parents have tattoos, my aunt, my grandfather, and countless other people I know. All of them have a much deeper meaning than just a piece of art. Mine, along with my parents, are all tattoos remembering my younger brother. However if I were not to tell somebody this, they might look at it negatively and think negatively of me and of my parents for allowing me to get a tattoo. People should not be so quick to jump to conclusions about people with tattoos. They don't know what the tattoo resembles and they don't know that person's past.

Also, I don't think that it's fair to deny someone a job because of their tattoos. It is not as common now for someone to be denied a job because of a tattoo, but there are still areas of employment that do not allow tattoos. Think about if you were denied a job because of a tattoo you had that resembled something very meaningful to you. It is said that tattoos are “unprofessional”, but what is unprofessional about wanting to having a piece of art on your body to resemble something meaningful to you? If you want to get a tattoo that resembles something very important and meaningful to you, you should be able to do it without having to worry about not getting certain jobs. I understand that not all tattoos that people get are meaningful, and that a lot of them are just pieces of art out of a book that a person liked, but still that does not mean the person should be deprived of job opportunities because of a choice they made that has no effect on anyone else. Regardless of what the tattoo is or what it means, people should not be deprived of job opportunities because of tattoos. Getting the tattoo is a choice that individual has made and that choice should not offend other people and prevent them from having certain jobs.

I believe there are too many negative views on tattoos. Tattoos are merely works of art that are crafted on a human canvas to be carried around and shown off to the world. Each tattoo resembles either something that the person believes in or loves, or resembles the wonderful work of the artist that designed it. When you see someone with a tattoo, don't be so quick to judge them. You might not know that person's past or what that person's tattoo stands for and means to them. Also, there is no reason a tattoo should prevent someone to get a job. Tattoos don't affect how a person works. If you are a good worker, you're going to be one with or without a tattoo. The tattoo artist that did my tattoo, along with my parents, is a police officer as well, and he is covered in tattoos. I understand if the person has a tattoo of something inappropriate, but just any regular tattoo should not be offensive to people and should not prevent them from getting a job. If a person chooses to put a tattoo on their own body that is their own choice. There is no reason that anyone a person should be judged, seen differently, or deprived of opportunities for choosing to have a work of art put on their body.