If you’ve spent any time at all recently on the internet, then surely you have seen the flood of articles and images all about semicolon tattoos. Dozens of pictures of people sharing their tattoos and the meaning behind them have been shared online by People, Buzzfeed, Pop Sugar, and Huffington Post, just to name a few. This craze has gotten more popular largely because of Project Semicolon. Project Semicolon is a group whose goal is to give support to people who are suffering from depression or struggling with self-injury and suicide. In a nutshell, the people coming forward with these tattoos in this group have struggled with their mental health and this tattoo is supposed to represent how they thought of giving up but instead chose to continue on living.
I have many friends who have had this tattoo for years before it became a trend. So, I decided to ask a friend about their story behind their semicolon tattoo. I was surprised to know the answer; her tattoo had absolutely nothing to do with self-harm or suicide. So, I showed her some of the many photos and articles online regarding this ever-popular tattoo and my friend seemed truly embarrassed and even ashamed at the thought of people thinking she was one of these people who struggled with their mental health.
Of all the reactions, I found this to be an odd one. I mean, who cares what people think of your tattoo? That got the wheels in my head turning; maybe it wasn’t the fear of what people would think of her tattoo but the fear of what people would think of her as a person because of the tattoo. If you scroll through the comments of any of the popularized articles with photos of these tattoos you see these people being called “emo kids” or “attention-seeking.” Nobody wants to be judged like that, even if the judgement is coming from the wrong place.
Whether we realize it or not, we are all in some way affected by the way the modern world stigmatizes mental illness. Today in society it is frowned upon to be open about suicidal thoughts or depression. If you’re open about it then you’re just seeking attention, whining or faking it. People who struggle with their mental health are faced with countless hurtful stereotypes like “Depressed people have no will power,” “All depressed people hurt themselves and only wear black clothing,” “People who suffer from depression are defective” and “Depression is only dictated by a person’s life choices and circumstances.”
That is what society says about people who are suffering. The thing is, society is wrong. Depression isn’t someone who only shops at Hot Topic and wears all black and spends their days moping. Depression can look like anybody. As young adults most of us, in some way, can relate to people suffering with depression. There is no need for anyone to be afraid of judgement for something they feel or for being sick or for struggling. Because all of those things are what make us human and anyone, absolutely anyone, can potentially suffer through something like the people who are brave enough to share the story behind their tattoos.
The semicolon tattoo doesn’t belong to just one community. I think a semicolon can be used to empower all kinds of survivors and people fighting different battles. The person who actually has the tattoo on their body is the only one who can give it meaning. I think that Project Semicolon is off to a good start not only by giving support to people who need it but by helping to show mental illness and its effects in a better light and by focusing on the fact that it is possible to heal and continue on with life. I think it’s high time that society stops shaming people for struggling with their mental health. If we change how we perceive people who are suffering through this, then maybe we can have more semicolons out in the world instead of another tragic story about someone giving up on their life.
