Are People With Tattoos Discriminated Against?

I think so. How often have you seen a mother walking with her child and when approached by someone with an unusual number of tattoos grab their child's hand or cross the street. How many times have these same "freaks" been discriminated against in job interviews, because the company does not feel that they would convey the required professionalism towards its clients. Some people have resorted to having "subtle" tattoos applied, in places on their bodies that can be covered with clothing, to avoid the problems created in the workplace.
While some people have a phobia about tattoos and some religious people feel it is a desecration, does everyone not have their own right to choose what they want to look like. At the same time people who have literally covered their body from head to foot in tattoos must understand that they will probably not get a job requiring lots of customer interaction. The same way that people with tattoos rights must be taken into consideration, so must they take into consideration the sensibilities of the average person.
There is a school of thought that some people may be addicted to the pain caused by the process of getting a tattoo and while this may be the case in some extreme examples, there is no scientific basis to back it up. Some tattoo studio owners have said that some people do get a bit fixated on the idea and spend quite a lot of money on "getting the perfect tat", but these are exceptions rather than the norm. A lot of people use tattoos as a means of getting closer to a loved one, or using them as a momento of a significant event in their lives.
Tattoos have been used for many purposes over the years, mostly for tribal markings, or to strike fear into the hearts of the enemy on the battlefield. The more modern day tribal markings have been used by gangs or gang members in prison to denote your loyalty to the clan. In some cultures woman of the gang members are marked with tattoos on their faces to show the world that they belong to them, but it also means they could never leave as they would be easy targets for rival gangs on the outside.
On the lighter side, some people have used tattoos on their bodies to tell a story or note history down. Whichever perspective is adopted, tattoos are personal choices sometimes made hastily, but most of the time only decided on after lots of thought and planning has gone into it and of course there are some who have used the art on their body as a calling card to the opposite sex, similar to animals in nature.
Whatever your point of view, whether you dislike them intensely or are addicted to them, they have a way of attracting interest. Someone once said that there is no such thing as good or bad publicity. So ask yourself this, the next time you see someone with tattoos walking towards you, "Am I a racist?"