By Rob Gallardo, Operation No Gangs/Operation No Gangs El Paso copyright 2007

Tattoos are not as common a feature in black gangs as in Hispanic gangs. White racist or skinhead gang members will sometimes sport tattoos with swastikas, crosses, demonic figures, or wording. Hispanic gang members typically display permanent tattoos of four types: their gang-given name, the name of their gang/gang logo/placazo, the name of a loved female (mother, girlfriend, child, Virgin Mary), artwork or meaningful images. Tattooed object images often have specific meaning. 

Images of skulls, the Grim Reaper, Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, sinister-faced clowns, guns, rosaries and themes of the common Hispanic gang slogan "Smile Now, Cry Later" are commonly found tattooed on young and older Hispanic gang males. 

  

 

Tattoos are not as commonly found on Hispanic female gang members, although females will commonly sport three or four dots, small crosses on or between fingers and wording such as "Mi Vida Loca."

Wording such as "Fuck The World," "Trust No One," "Trust No Bitch" and "Only God Can Judge Me" are also commonly emblazoned as tattoos on Hispanic youth gangsters

A teardrop under one eye may mean that the wearer has killed someone, or lost a loved one as part of gang rivalry.

 

                         

Other gangs have similar mottos related to the three dots such as: "Death Before Dishonor."

More recently in the El Paso area, Hispanic gangs have stated that the four dots signify "My (gang) family comes first."

 

or six dots along with crowns of five or six points.

Some gangs incorporate the use of pitchforks, crowns, or Native American/Mexican Indian figures in their tattoo drawings. Lettering with a member's gang name is often done in Old English or Gothic lettering and is often placed over the stomach area in lettering sometimes some five or more inches in height.

Rebel and party crews often utilize a five-point star with a thick border as part of their identification in the El Paso metropolitan and surrounding area. These tattoos are found often on the arm or on upper torso, in the example below. 

The tattooed gang name is also often placed elsewhere on the torso, on the upper arm area, on the side of one ankle, 

on the knuckles or on the back of the neck. Older youth who have established themselves in a gang will often choose to wear their gang name on their upper back at the base of their head.

The letters "V", "B" and "L" are common letters in gang names and are often displayed as acronyms or letter abbreviations for the gang's name. "V" often stands for the word "Varrio" (neighborhood) or "Vatos" (dudes, fellows, homies). "L" often signifies "Loco" or "Loko," meaning "crazy" or "down (zealous)."

 

In El Paso and the Southwestern United States the letter "M" is now commonly used in connection with the word "Mexican" as part of a gang name. Some members of the Mexican Mafia gang sport a Mickey Mouse tattoo in order to substitute for the two "M's" of their gang name.

 

The three numbers "915" represent the telephonic area code for the El Paso metro area and are sometimes sported as tattoos 

by area gang members, or written on walls as graffiti markings.

The Barrio Azteca adult group typically uses the number "21" as an identifier and may use an Aztec Indian head with the number of feathers indicating the rank of the individual with the tattoo. Tattoos also may state in Spanish "Dos Uno," standing for the numerical equivalent of "21." The number "two" is used to represent the letter "B." and the number "one" representing the letter "A" ("BA"). Alternatively,the Roman numerals "XXI" might be used for this representation. 

Members of  BCG utilize the numbers "2" and "3" corresponding the the alphabetical order of the first two letters of the gang alphabetical abbreviation. Members of this group typically hold meetings on the 23rd day of a given month and regard the "23" number as sacred.

Various youth gangs in El Paso also utilize numbers in their tattoos and graffiiti markings corresponding to the numbers on a telephone key pad. For example, LVH will use the numbers "584" - the letter "L" is found on the number "5" key, the letter "V" is found on the "8" telephone key, and "H" is found on the telephone keypad with the number "4." http://twitpic.com/4q8l7l  

 

has signified "entaglement" or "being caught up" in the gang life.

a tattoo marking. From a medical standpoint, these inscribed carvings can be even more dangerous than home-made ink tattoo applications  as infection can set in more easily. Additionally, Hepatitis C and AIDS can be transmitted in the homemade tattoo application process whether by carving or ink application.

While many gang members choose to have tattoos for reasons of pride and identification, the same tattoos can be used by law enforcement to identify members without paper I.D. Law enforcement regularly classifies individual gang members by tattoos and inscriptions which are listed on their criminal and other records if they become entangled with the law.