It marks their territory or turf and also sends clear messages to rival gang members. By being able to read gang graffiti, a person should always know what is going down in a particular neighborhood. Tags or throw-ups are used by taggers and tag krews to gain notoriety and express their identity in what they consider to be a creative manner. However, in cities where spray paint cans are under lock and key, you may see this graffiti in any color writers can get a hold of.
Gang members use their moniker or street name in their writing.
Crips usually cross-out or put an x through letters B and P as a sign of disrespect toward the Blood and Piru sets. Here are examples of gang graffiti written by a current Crip gang member. The first set of mind maps , or graffiti, shows affiliation with the Crip gang. The second set shows disrespect toward the Blood and Piru sets. Click on either picture for a larger image.