A tattoo artist sparked controversy on social media after posting a video showing him tattooing a nine-year-old girl.
The girl reportedly traveled from another state with her parents to the Black Onyx Empire studio, located in Arizona. Apparently, the tattoo was done last year, and she recently returned to the studio for a touch-up.
When they arrived for their first visit, the family said the girl wanted to get a portrait of the elected president Donald Trump tattooed. However, the tattoo artist, known as Sosa, managed to convince the girl and her parents to change their minds.
Instead, Sosa tattooed the United States flag on the girl’s arm. Although the decision is questionable, what they did is not illegal. According to Arizona state law, there is no issue with tattooing someone under 18 as long as their parents are present.
Still, the tattoo artist received a lot of criticism, which he responded to in a statement to the Arizona’s Family program. “Any publicity is good publicity. I’d rather have good publicity, but this is just a debate,” he explained, emphasizing that his intention was not to promote tattoos on minors.
In addition to convincing the family to change the original tattoo idea, Sosa allegedly charged a higher price to try to persuade the parents to back out. Although the tattoo was supposed to cost about $80, the tattoo artist charged $500, according to The New York Post.
Photo and video: Instagram @blackonyxempire. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.