OETA Stateline http://www.oeta.onenet.net/stateline/index.html Oklahoma is the only state in the union which outlaws tattooing. So why do we see more and more tattoo parlors and even broadcast commercials touting tattooing? Why does law enforcement apparently not enforce the law?

The February edition of the OETA award-winning documentary series Stateline will shed light on the needling questions, even as state officials design and ink legislation seeking regulation of the industry.

The first ever Oklahoma tattoo convention was held in 2005, partly in an attempt to organize artists and shore up support to kill the crime and punishment statute in Oklahoma law. The gathering also displayed the diversity of the people and the pictures involved in the practice.

With continuing developments in laser technology, the argument from tattoo artists in Oklahoma often is that body inking can be removed, and therefore not subject to the tattoo taboo set forth in state statute. It apparently also takes the risk out of having your current significant other’s name tattooed on you. After all, you can have that removed following a break-up, and the replacement significant other’s initials inked in, well, replacement.

Stateline also addresses the concerns of some public safety officials in the state who believe legalized tattooing provides an open door for certain gang or even mafia elements to expand their questionable business to Oklahoma.

It might surprise Stateline viewers of the variety of issues inherent with the advent of body art. How young is too young? Is this a First Amendment issue? Who pays for health inspectors? Is one Oklahoman’s art another Oklahoman’s pornography?