Gangster Tattoos

Since the ancient Roman Empire tattoos have been related to criminal deviancy. Although such a taboo against tattoos does not exist today, many gangs use tattoos as a means of identifying with a particular group. Many gang members use tattoos for several reasons not the least among which is a sign of having spent time in prison. Gang members sometimes have several tattoos, each symbolizing or representing something unique in their lives.

The famous (or is it infamous?) tear drop tattoo usually tattooed on the cheek below either eye represents prison time. However, some say it actually stands for the number of people they have killed. Some gangsters have their name tattooed real big and bold (so they are visible from any distance?) in an effort to intimidate rival gang members.

Some gangsters are known to take pride in identifying themselves outside the premise of conventional society. They use tattoos (more often than not) to express their beliefs and life philosophy which is a complete rejection of conventional moral and religious beliefs – popularly known as the nihilistic philosophy. They commonly have the name of a person tattooed on the back of their neck or a gang motto etched on the chest. These tattoos are usually done in black and grey and often showcase bullets, firearms, numbers and secret letters in old English or the gothic script.

One of the biggest gangs in California is that of The Sureños (which means Southerners in Spanish). They were one of the very first to use colors to set themselves apart from other gangs. They started using blue bandanas (the color of the railroad handkerchiefs provided in the California prisons) as their identity. Numbers are also sometimes incorporated in their tattoos – they use the Tres Puntos (meaning three dots) and X3 (the number 13.)

The other major gang of California is the The Norteños. Yes, you guessed it – it means the Northerners. They are also popularly known as Nuestra Familia meaning ‘Our Family’. As you may have also guessed the Northerners and the Southerners traditionally have been rivals with Bakersfield (in California) being their geographical dividing line. The Northerners are more notoriously known for their involvement in the drug trafficking trade and armed conflict with rival gangs.