Rank the 'Tattoo Talk' With Drugs and Alcohol as a Parent

Underage tattooing has been a nightmare issue for both parents and children alike in recent years. The notoriety of young celebrities who bare their tattooed skin for their younger fans to admire opens the debate concerning role model behavior and presentation to our under 18 crowds.

In ancient circles, tattooing the body was a form of ritual and art-work. Tribal tattoos were given to children very young, with the entire tribe engaging in the structured and carefully planned family-type activity of initiation involved in giving and receiving the tattoo was a major part of this culture. This practice extends into the present day in tribal society, as well as, in some cases, extreme body piercing.

While we are not a tribal society, modern social pressures for teens in particular, together with a popular cult-ure of rising stars with little to no concern for the image they are portraying to their younger fans, has brought the issue of underage tattooing to the forefront of many family discussions. Like the tribal society that engages in ritual tattooing through the family unit, the discussion of underage tattooing needs to be initiated within the same family unit here in the United States.

Far from being a social problem, although one could argue for stricter rulings for tattoo artists who are caught tattooing children without parental consent, the issue of tattooing on minors needs to be addressed at the much more intimate level of in home discussions and guidelines for acceptable behavior, limits and consequences, by parents to their children.

School districts in some areas of the country are speculating about the importance of tattoo education for teens in particular regarding the laws and the dangers of underage and underground tattooing in unsterile facilities. While the topic is definitely a great health concern, and needs to be addressed in that manner, the onus still falls on the parents of teens to be certain of their child's activity by becoming more involved in the lives of their children.

When a 14 year old girl can obtain a tattoo from a stranger, the obvious concern needs to extend much further than the kinds of skin troubles she can contract from dirty needles; although that too is definitely an issue ~ perhaps concern for whether she would make it out of a stranger's home alive might also need to be talked about at the family dinner table.

Definitely lobby for educating children to the health dangers of underground and underage tattooing in schools and anywhere else children are prone to hang-out, but make the major portion of this issue your issue and protect your children by talking to them about making wise choices concerning their bodies and health now. Factor this one in as one of those topics you need to talk to your kids about, up there with drugs, alcohol and sex.


Inflicting Ink supports state laws and regulations regarding underage tattooing and sterile facilities by refusing to tattoo minors, and maintaining a sterile tattoo facility that exceeds every guideline in RI and the United States at this time.


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Inflicting Ink is a Rhode Island Tattoo Studio that embodies quality, consistency and pride, and offers a sterile, safe, comfortable, artistic environment to its customers.  Nominated multiple times for the Best Tattoo Parlor in Rhode Island and Best Tattoo Artist in RI.

You may contact them for an appointment for a tattoo at (401) 683-5680 and of course walk-ins are always welcome.

For more information, please visit our home page at www.inflictinginktattoo.com.

RI Tattoo Studio Applauds Court Decision Upholding First Amendment

Appeals court ends tattoo parlor ban in Calif city

By PAUL ELIAS
Associated Press Writer

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal appeals court struck down a city ban on tattoo parlors Thursday, ruling the artistic expression is entitled to free speech protection under the U.S. Constitution.

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the Southern California city of Hermosa Beach to allow tattoo parlors to operate.

The city had argued the operations threaten public health and attract an unsavory clientele prone to crime.

Several state courts and federal trial courts have upheld similar bans in other cities across the country.

However, the ruling Thursday was the first by a federal appeals court, meaning such bans are now unconstitutional in the nine western states that must comply with 9th Circuit rulings.

Circuit Judge Jay Bybee, writing for the unanimous three-judge panel, called the city's ban "substantially broader than necessary to achieve the city's significant health and safety interests and because it entirely forecloses a unique and important method of expression."

The court said the ban was an unconstitutional overreaction to health concerns that can be addressed through regulations to ensure sanitation.

Hermosa Beach City Attorney Michael Jenkins said the city was disappointed with the ruling and hasn't decided whether to appeal.

"The Hermosa Beach City Council places a priority on protecting the public's health and safety, and it adopted this ordinance because of the potential health hazards caused by unsanitary tattoo practices," Jenkins said.

Johnny Anderson sued the city in 2007 after it refused to let him move Yer Cheat'n Heart Tattoo studio from Gardena to Hermosa Beach, which is closer to his Redondo Beach home and three young children.

"They have an outdated notion that only sailors and fallen women get tattoos, which isn't the case," Anderson said of his legal battle with Hermosa Beach officials. "Everybody gets a tattoo these days."

Free speech expert Jesse Choper said it's unlikely the U.S. Supreme Court would take up the case, noting that Bybee is a politically conservative judge.

"It's a pretty straightforward case," said Choper, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley. "It would seem a clear, uncontroversial application of the First Amendment."


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Inflicting Ink is a Rhode Island Tattoo Studio that embodies quality, consistency and pride, and offers a sterile, safe, comfortable, artistic environment to its customers.  Nominated multiple times for the Best Tattoo Parlor in Rhode Island and Best Tattoo Artist in RI.

You may contact them for an appointment for a tattoo at (401) 683-5680 and of course walk-ins are always welcome.

For more information, please visit our home page at www.inflictinginktattoo.com.

Proud Owner of Captain America Tattoo

Another happy customer from Inflicting Ink Tattoo Studio.

Thanks,Marc,for doing Captain America proud with his shield. I am already psyched for my next piece of art.
Eric L.

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Inflicting Ink is a Rhode Island Tattoo Studio that embodies quality, consistency and pride, and offers a sterile, safe, comfortable, artistic environment to its customers.  Nominated multiple times for the Best Tattoo Parlor in Rhode Island and Best Tattoo Artist in RI.

You may contact them for an appointment for a tattoo at (401) 683-5680 and of course walk-ins are always welcome.

For more information, please visit our home page at www.inflictinginktattoo.com.

My Tattoo Looks Great!

From time to time our great customers make an effort to let us know how we're doing through our online guestbook. We thought it might be fun to share some of their tattoo testimonials and comments here with all of you.

Hey Marc thanks for the tat on my arm aka my "guns" haha it looks Great! I'll be seeing you soon for another. Take Care!
Jeanette F.


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Inflicting Ink is a Rhode Island Tattoo Studio that embodies quality, consistency and pride, and offers a sterile, safe, comfortable, artistic environment to its customers.  Nominated multiple times for the Best Tattoo Parlor in Rhode Island and Best Tattoo Artist in RI.

You may contact them for an appointment for a tattoo at (401) 683-5680 and of course walk-ins are always welcome.

For more information, please visit our home page at www.inflictinginktattoo.com.

Sterile Tattoo Environments and RI Tattoo Law

Jeff Goyette, the owner of Inflicting Ink Tattoo Studio in Portsmouth RI, and also the creator, builder and owner of the Inflicting Ink Traveling Tattoo truck, has been involved in the tattoo industry for almost all of his adult life, making him a veritable expert in this field.

In the State of Rhode Island, the last time the tattooing laws were rewritten was in 1997. Due to Jeff’s extensive knowledge in the areas of blood-born pathogens, sterile procedures, cross contamination, barrier coding, and the tattoo industry, he was asked by the State to consult with them regarding rewriting the bylaws and what needed to be contained in order to keep the public safe.

After several months of consulting with Vincent Bacari, who was in charge of the Medical Tattooing Department of the Department of Health, the new laws went into effect.

Although the laws were altered to provide a somewhat more sterile approach to tattooing, many of Jeff’s suggestions were labeled an ‘unnecessary precaution’ and were not adopted. Jeff feels that there is still too much of a gap in the procedures that the State notes as acceptable and what he considers the ultimate protective environment in which to tattoo. And though the standards are improving, he is adamant that the procedures and environment at Inflicting Ink Tattoo Studio and Traveling Tattoo remain well above the State recommendations in the areas of sterilization, environment, and sterile practices.

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Inflicting Ink is a Rhode Island Tattoo Studio that embodies quality, consistency and pride, and offers a sterile, safe, comfortable, artistic environment to its customers.  Nominated multiple times for the Best Tattoo Parlor in Rhode Island and Best Tattoo Artist in RI.

You may contact them for an appointment for a tattoo at (401) 683-5680 and of course walk-ins are always welcome.

For more information, please visit our home page at www.inflictinginktattoo.com.