<p>Missy, no one is advocating that they do things that would cut out job prospects. Rather, some others and I are simply saying that it’s becoming more acceptable. I’m not dumb. I know my piercings could have killed some job chances. Same with visible tattoos. Quite frankly though, that’s changing and many people with visible tats don’t want to work where they aren’t welcome because of a tat.</p>
<p>Others beat me to the point that being overweight is not a protected class when it comes to employment decisions. You are perfectly free to openly refuse to hire someone who does not meet your weight requirements. To be on the safe side in case of lawsuits, an employer would be smart to write up some policy statement explaining why someone very fat is not suitable for a given job. </p>
<p>And it’s the same with being smoker or having tattoos. Not protected</p>
<p>For employment the current protected classes are: Race, Color, Religion, National origin, Age (40 and over), Sex, Familial status, Disability status, Veteran status, and Genetic information.</p>
<p>
…</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>[Covering:</a> The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights: Kenji Yoshino: 9780375508202: Amazon.com: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Covering-Hidden-Assault-Civil-Rights/dp/0375508201]Covering:”>http://www.amazon.com/Covering-Hidden-Assault-Civil-Rights/dp/0375508201)</p>
<p>I teach college students. Lots of piercings and tattoos. Sometimes they’re the best students. Often they are the most serulious students because their non- conformity is born of sensitivity. Sometimes that is not the case.</p>
<p>I come from an era when boys were actually kicked out if their houses for having long hair. These were my friends: peace loving hippies. Things can look very different to different generations.</p>
<p>That said, neither of my children ( early twenties) ever considered either.</p>
<p>I find if I really look at the tattoos I <em>can</em> appreciate the artistry.</p>
<p>The only thing I find difficult is when a student plays with their tongue stud in a small seminar. Like obvious gum chewing, it distracts me.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>So Botox, facelifts, hair transplants, nose jobs and breast implants/reductions are in the same category?</p>
<p>hair removal/waxing…</p>
<p>ouch ouch ouch</p>
<p>they said that their clients expected a certain standard of appearance and health, and they wanted their employees to avoid the hypocrisy of teaching health behaviors while living a lie.</p>
<p>I have to wonder if they also let go all the physicians who smoked and who imbibe more than three drinks or so a week.
What it is it with the medical profession and smoking?
I also see radiologists who don’t take precautions, its like they believe their own press.</p>
<p>“hair removal/waxing…”</p>
<p>I have a tattoo and I’ve had a bikini wax. The waxing was FAR more painful than the tattoo. And yet, it wasn’t permanent. Not that I ever wanted to do it again after that experience…</p>
<p>I haven’t read the whole thread so I don’t know if this point has been made. I work in Austin, where tattoos are extremely common, including tattoos made up of Chinese characters. I find it somewhat amusing and somewhat sad when my wife, who grew up in China, reads to me the meaning of the characters in tattoos of people we see on the street and reveals that so many of the tattooed messages are nonsensical. You really shouldn’t be getting tattoos in Chinese characters if you cannot read Chinese.</p>
<p>alh,</p>
<p>The book on “covering” you cite looks to be really, really interesting. If I’m following, the hypothesis is that humans have an innate need to “cover” and by negatively judging those driven to “cover” themselves in ways different than our societal norms, then we are descending into a form of bigotry that is very unfair . . . because of the innate need within us to “cover”.</p>
<p>Have I got that right? Don’t know that I buy it, really, but it’s provocative. :)</p>
<p>Austin, my boyfriend does that too but with Japanese. We’ve found some awesomely terrible ones.</p>
<p>“So Botox, facelifts, hair transplants, nose jobs and breast implants/reductions are in the same category?”</p>
<p>Wouldn’t do any of those things either, but in terms of how they appeal to others than the actual modifier - how would a stranger know? Unless it was a botched job.</p>
<p>And breast reductions can be/often are a matter of medical need.</p>
<p>Just discovered my DH has “A Thousand Times More Fair” on his home office bookshelf. He says he hasn’t read it yet but it’s in the queue. Very cool.</p>
<p>sewhappy: This book changed the way I look at the world. If it looks intriguing, I encourage you to read it yourself. No way would I attempt to summarize Yoshino’s arguments. Maybe someone else on this thread can do so for you. It’s way too intellectual for me to follow entirely. You might be interested in quotes from some reviews by various university big-wigs:</p>
<p>[Covering:</a> The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights - Kenji Yoshino - Google Books](<a href=“http://books.google.com/books/about/Covering.html?id=mbfitZJCjX8C]Covering:”>Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights - Kenji Yoshino - Google Books)</p>
<p>It does seem to me a fascinating starting point for an extremely interesting exploration of coerced conformity</p>
<p>ps if you read it and want to start a thread, I’m so there. :)</p>
<p>Haven’t read everything here, but this is an interesting topic. We have 4 kids, the oldest 2 being twins. No tattoos, but our D did a lot of piercings in high school/college…lip, nose, eyebrow, etc. She also dressed very "creatively, cut her own hair, and hung around with a quirky, creative bunch. Despite her looks, she was the easy child- good grades, not a partier, never in trouble, didn’t drink (still doesn’t to this day). Her twin brother on the other hand looked like a model citizen, but was constantly a challenge- didn’t like school, loved to “socialize” …nothing terrible but definitely NOT a model citizen. Fortunately, they both turned out great, but it goes to show you that looks are deceiving! At our D’s wedding, most of the wedding party was heavily tattooed. They are a very successful group of young adults with not a problem in the bunch. Our D is now a high school English teacher at a continuation school- a very challenging group of kids. While she no longer wears her piercings, the one on her lip shows a small scar, and one of the kids recently commented “Hey Ms. _________, you musta been a wild one!” We cracked up…</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Yes, it is about the demand to cover, not an innate need to cover. The demand is a form of bigotry.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Of course not. And note that the hospital’s policy on BMI applied only to nurses.</p>
<p>Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights - Kenji Yoshino was the suggested reading for D1 at UNC prior to her freshman year. It made a big impression on her and the few others who actually read it. ;)</p>
<p>I’m having trouble wrapping my mind around the societal demand for us to cover and the act of pursuing extreme tattooing and/or piercing as somehow inviting society’s wrath for not covering. Tattoos are a form of cover, aren’t they? I think of extreme tattooing and/or piercing as an act of covering our natural physical selves.</p>
<p>I would see the societal expectation for us to cover as more of a plastic surgery, “fix the nose” or pluck the bushy eyebrows type thing.</p>
<p>The covering that you describe is not what the author of the book describes.</p>