A new Tennessee bill could require tattoo artists to get training on recognizing the signs of human trafficking and responding to them.
Tattoos are among the tools traffickers use to assert control over their victims using symbols, names or phrases that brand a person as property, according to Thistle Farms, a Tennessee nonprofit group that works to help women recover and heal from prostitution, human trafficking and addiction.
If approved, the Hope of Ink Act would require all tattoo artists and operators to complete up to a one-hour online or in-person training at no cost in order to obtain a license.
