What do the sneakers hanging from electrical cables mean?

It is not too strange to go down the street and find a pair of sneakers hanging from the power lines. And it is that this act has become a universal trend. It is called 'Shoefiti', a play on words between 'shoe' and graffiti.

Many claim that this fashion has a special meaning in which it would indicate that they are places where drug trafficking is carried out, but there are numerous similar explanations in Internet forums.

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— Chani Nicholas Sat Jun 20 22:27:45 +0000 2020

Another urban legend points out that it is a secret code used by street gangs to delimit the territory, to indicate how far their domains extend. Other opinions suggest that the hanging 'zapas' is an indication that there is a occupied house, in which members of the "okupa" movement live.

However, what is clear is that the symbol of public wiring sneakers is all the rage. 'Shoefiti' is a movement that originated in the United States and there has become urban art in some places. In addition, in 2003 the Los Angeles City Council (USA) warned that the hanging shoes indicated drug sales places and began a campaign to remove all traces of air shoes from the streets of that city on the West coast. But what is clear is that the only certain thing about this practice is that it indicates the death of the owner, at least in some American neighborhoods.

On the other hand, in Spain, 25 years ago when military service was compulsory, there would be no doubt about the meaning of sneakers. At the end of the 80s, it was customary, in front of many army barracks, to see these shoes hanging on power lines because the license used to be accompanied by this custom.