Tats are cool. An explosion of popularity in body art has brought a whole new community of ink’d millennials. Television series, Instagram models, and even kids at school are embracing their new tats. In fact, 28 percent of the students that answered to a survey at North Platte High have tattoos. There are six tattoo shops in North Platte, in comparison, there are just seven coffee shops. It’s no question that tattoos have evolved from being taboo to being a fad among all age groups.

According to results from a Bulldogger poll, 42.7 percent of NPPSD staff has tattoos, and 44 percent of their tats are visible. However, 46.6 percent of the staff believe that teens shouldn’t get any tattoos. Some words of wisdom from NPHS math teacher, “Having a visible tattoo does not affect a person’s professionalism, but the perception people get from seeing visible tattoo may have a negative consequence,” Kyle Milton said.

According to the Pew Research Center, 36 percent of Gen Nexters have at least one tattoo. At NPHS 57.7 percent of the students surveyed have more than one tat. However, this statistic is soon to change because 96.2 percent of the already tattooed students want to get more.

Some tattoos are planned, while others are done out of impulse, but each story is unique. Freshman Jozlynne Dunham got her tattoo after her dad committed suicide last year. She has his signature and two heart beats with a semicolon in between the two.(Shown to the left.)“They let me know he is still here. That he still lives on in the memories I have, and I know for every step I take, and for every breath I take I’ll be taking one for him…it’s what keeps him alive even though he’s not here,” Dunham said. The semicolon stands for mental illness and suicide awareness.

Dunham has dealt with mental illness among her friends and family for the majority of her life. Some of the diseases include bipolar, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and borderline personality disorder. “If I could take everyone’s pain away I would, But that’s not really possible,” she said. She now lives in foster care and doesn’t get to see her mom as much. “I didn’t get my tattoos to look cool or to fit in. I got them for a permanent reminder that my dad wasn’t a dream,” she said.

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This is where the magic began. Body piercings are becoming more and more frequent among the youth as well as tattoos. Freshman Maylah Langemeier got three piercings in her right ear at Twisted Needle. Even though her parents won’t let her get any tattoos, on that same day her mother and her sister both got some new ink.

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Some students claim they don’t have any tattoos because their parents won’t let them. However, this didn’t stop Senior Tristan Dugger from getting his ink. He got his very first tattoo when he was 14. “I’ve always liked to express myself, that’s why I get colorful ones,” Dugger said.