Did "In Loving Memory of..." start with the gang banger thug culture?
Asked by
Charles (
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May 27th, 2012
So you are at a light and a truck in front of you has “In loving Memory of Mommy’s Little Angel 2001–2005” sticker with crosses in the rear window.
Now you’re sorry for her loss, but does it ruin someone’s morning? Why do people want to share their grief like this? Who wouldn’t feel bummed about a 4 year old death? Do you really want to know about it? Do people enjoy wearing their grief on their sleeves?
Wasn’t it gangs who started this sticker thing “in loving memory of” when one of their hommies got shot down by a rival? Now you see them everywhere. “Hey.. everybody… look at me.. look at the tragedy I went through.” It seems to trivialize death, not honor it.
“In loving memory of Hector “Sniper” Gonzales 1990–2008”
“In loving memory of “Swiper” 1992–2008”
“In loving memory of “Creeper” 1985–2005”
This is always near the “Raider Nation” or “Go Raiders” stickers on the back of the car/truck/SUV.
You’ll see it on the redneck trucks too, Wedged right between the “Calvin pissing on Chevy” sticker, and the “deer in crosshairs” sticker:
“R.I.P Robert Earl Dale Lee “P-Nut” Walker, VII
1989 – 2009”
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9 Answers
If a person gets sad and distraught over a sticker, they have other problems.
Out here I live in the hills there are quite a few “memorials” crosses, fake flowers, etc. along some of these wild roads in memorial to people who died from accidents.
Personally making a public declaration of grief is not my thing, but as @Blackberry said, if one takes great offense at these stickers they have deeper issues. Live and let live…pun intended lol
I know exactly what you are talking about, as they have cropped up in Memphis as well. I can’t answer your question though, as most of the ones I’ve seen seem to reference someone recently lost due to being in the military. How it all started is a mystery on this end. I’ve even attempted to look it up on the internet.
When I see them, it does give me a moment of pause where I think about their grief. It might even stir up memories of my own personal losses. Then it quickly turns to, “Why in the world would someone put this on their vehicle?” To a degree, it trivializes the loss of someone that they may or may not have been close to by advertising it to people who probably do not care.
If someone were to do this in memory of me, I would really like to come back in some form that could scrape it off and leave a Post-it note on the window that says, “You may need counseling. ~Pied”
I have never seen this on a vehicle. And I live where there are a lot of vehicles.
I have no clue how it started, and I’ve never seen one that looked like a gang member was being honored. I don’t get it at all . I actually wrote a blog post (personal blog, not Fluther’s):
What motivates people to have their loved one’s birth and death dates made into a custom sticker for their car? I’m sure you’ve seen them. “In loving memory of…”
It always makes me sad to be stopped behind one of these vehicles, especially if the dates indicate that a child has died. That can really put a damper on your day. ~ But on a more practical note… aren’t they going to sell this car in a few years? Imagine the process of scraping that sticker off your car. Or worse, leaving it on and selling it to some stranger from Craig’s List! Memorial tattoos I can understand… your skin will be with you til the end. But your car? Really?
Is this a regional thing?—South/Southeast? Southwest? Not Northeast, I bet.
If it’s done anywhere near me (Northern California), I’ve totally missed it. I sure hope it doesn’t catch on.
@Jeruba I’ve seen it up and down the east coast.
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