SOCIETY & CULTURE
Image courtesy of Pixabay and covered by CC0 Creative Commons
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Tattoos are a form of artwork that allows a person to use his or her skin to display his or her family history, [and values] in a personal way. Since the 1960’s, there has been a steady rise in the number of people getting tattoos. However, the popularity of tattoos has spiked in the last decade. But with tattoos becoming more common, and the some of the professional companies not allowing tattoos, how will the younger generations be able to obtain a career?
There are few companies that are one-hundred percent open to their employees having tattoos. But what about the businesses who are concerned how customers perceive them? School systems are a prime example of workplaces where tattoos are considered inappropriate.
Among the population who strive to abide by the rules of their employers, who are often referred to as cleanskins, are the faculty who are testing the system. Amidst the cleanskins, is Danny Mehigan. Mehigan is a math teacher at Providence Day School who has thrived in the environment, despite his tattoos.
In a recent interview with the young teacher, he was hit with a swarm of questions targeting tattoos. When asked if he thinks tattoos are acceptable in the professional setting, Mehigan responds with “I do think tattoos are appropriate, but with a catch. I don’t think they should be outlawed, but at the same time, there is a sense of professional decorum that should be followed.”
A working,complicated canvas: tattoos in the workplace
By Marian Gallis
In the West, a burst of popularity in the 1960's, with the mainstreaming of biker and hippie culture, meant that by the 1990's, the leading tattooed demographic was the white suburban female. Tattoos had become, like sports cars or leather pants, something to signify lost youth amid the doldrums of mainstream adult life.
http://nationalpost.com/news/canada/why-this-red-hot-tattoo-boom-is-bound-to-end-with-regret-again
As tattoos become more popular among the younger generations, there have been a spike in debates on whether or not they should be allowed in the professional workplace.
"There is a sense of professional decorum that should
be followed." – Danny Mehigan
The decorum that Mehigan is talking about, as understood from the interview, is that the artwork should be concealed if it is distracting. Mehigan says “If you are somebody who has a lot of tattoos, and they are colorful and all over the place, it takes away from what you are trying to do at work. You don’t necessarily show the entirety of your personality and the entirety of who you are at all times. There are times and places to do those things, and work, especially an environment like a school, is not the place to do that all the time. But I think within reason, tattoos can be okay.”
Image courtesy of Max Pixel and covered by CC0 Public Domain
Image courtesy of Max Pixel and covered by CC0 Public Domain
The Charger, December 2017
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