Rapper Lil Wayne with teardrop tattoos below his eyes
The teardrop tattooortear tattoo is a symbolic tattoo of a tear that is placed underneath the eye. The teardrop is one of the most widely recognised prison tattoos[1] and has various meanings.
It can signify that the wearer has spent time in prison,[2][3] or more specifically that the wearer was raped while incarcerated and tattooed by the rapist as a "property" mark and for humiliation, since facial tattoos cannot be concealed.[4][5][6][7]
The tattoo is sometimes worn by the female companions of prisoners in solidarity with their loved ones.[8]Amy Winehouse had a teardrop drawn on her face in eyeliner after her husband Blake entered the Pentonville prison hospital following a suspected drug overdose.[9]
It can acknowledge the loss of a friend or family member: Basketball player Amar'e Stoudemire has had a teardrop tattoo since 2012 honouring his older brother Hazell Jr., who died in a car accident.[10]
In West Coast United States gang culture, the tattoo may signify that the wearer has killed someone[11][12] and in some of those circles, the tattoo's meaning can change: an empty outline meaning the wearer attempted murder.
Sometimes the exact meaning of the tattoo is known only by the wearer.[12][13]
^"What does teardrop tattoo mean?". dictionary.com. a dominant inmate forces the tattoo on a submissive one after being extorted, abused or raped — a form of public humiliation
^"Teardrop Tattoo Meaning: Tattoos With Meaning". tattooswithmeaning.com. this was a way of "marking" an inmate as the property of another person or humiliating the inmate while in jail, as a tattoo on the face cannot be covered up or hidden
^Santos, Xuan (Fall 2009). "The Chicana Canvas: Doing Class, Gender, Race, and Sexuality through Tattooing in East Los Angeles". Feminist Formations. 21 (3): 91–120.
^WOLF, SONJA; Logan, Samuel (August 2010). "This is for the Mara Salvatrucha: Inside the MS-13, America's Most Violent Gang". Journal of Latin American Studies. 42 (3): 627–629. doi:10.1017/s0022216x10000994. S2CID145081109.
