Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s 11-year-old daughter, Willow, was recently given a tongue-lashing on social media after posting a picture of herself sporting a tongue piercing on Instagram.
asapniceee: “She is too young for such a provocative piercing. Why would her parents let her pierce her tongue?”
tiffaneybabeyy : “At your age, Willow, I don’t think a piercing should be on you, especially there.”
mariajx91: “Maybe you should stop rushing to grow up Willow. It looks trashy. You’re 11, and that doesn’t look good at any age to be honest. Hope it’s fake.”
Though she later revealed that it was in fact a fake, magnetic tongue ring, people were already whipping their opinions back and forth about whether young people are too vulnerable to make permanent (or potentially scarring) decisions about their bodies. The issue: What is classified as “too young”?
While the battle over body modification typically occurs between parents and their children, state legislatures have entered the conversation as well.
In June, Jerry Garrison, a Florida grandfather, lost custody of his 10-year-old grandson after allowing him to get a tattoo of his initials on his right leg. A “family tradition,” according to Garrison.
Under Florida law, a person younger than 16 years old cannot be tattooed except “for medical or dental reasons,” and anyone age 16 to 18 can be tattooed only with the consent of a parent or guardian.
That law was changed in January 2012; it had previously allowed tattooing under the age of 16 so long as the minor had parental consent.
Most states allow tattoos and body piercings for children under the age of majority, which is 18 years old in most of the United States, with parental consent. Though, some have tightened restrictions.
In Idaho, “No person shall knowingly tattoo, brand or perform body piercing on any minor under the age of fourteen (14) years.”
In South Carolina, anyone under the age of 21 is prohibited from being tattooed. If a person is 18, a parent can give consent, but anyone under 18 is prohibited from ink of any type.
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article courtesy of Newsnet5.com
