Initiation has always been a part of the human culture. Tribes such as the Sambia have initiation rituals to transformed “boys” into “men” and “girls” into “women,” and the Christian baptism accepts or confirms someone into their religious order. Initiation rites range from simple as accepting a certain set of rules to surviving hardship. Gangs as organized group have also developed initiation rites.
There are several types of gang initiation rite: “beat in” to committing murder.
The “bea
t in” is one of the more common initiations. The word explains it all, to be “beat in” literally means if a person wants to join a gang, he or she will have to go through a severe beating. This beating is done by selected members and it is any form of beating. It may range from stomping a person to using clubs or bats. Sometimes being “beat in” is not enough. The initiate will also have to commit criminal acts such as assault, drive by, or even murder before he/she is acknowledge into the gang. These are done to anyone from rival gang members to innocent people. As for girls, to avoid these initiations mentioned above, some must go through a “sex in”. This is when a female is forced to have intercourse with selected men, ranging from 1 to multiple men.
Video of a “beat-in”
The initiation rite for street gangs is to determine whether an individual is capable of being a member. What is a capable member? A capable member is one who will show no sign of opposing his/her gang. He or she must obey the commands and take any necessary action to get something done if needed. So these initiations allow a certain gang to analyze this certain individual that is looking to join the gang.
Joining a gang takes an initiation and alike leaving a gang, also takes an initiation. Gang members wanting to leave will have to get “beat out.” If members request to leave the gang, usually they will be assaulted by selected members of the gang. It is similar to a “beat in,” but more severe and possibility result in death.
As gangs grow and develop, we can only imagine that these initiations will evolve with it. Simple initiation such as a “beat in” may turn in to mass violence and crimes. An example is an organized and powerful gang, growing bigger and recruits more people to be part of their gangs. Initiations would not be as simple as getting “beat in,” but more complex and organized such as killing multiple people, robbing in the mass… and the list goes on. As long as society exist gangs will exist, therefore it affects us all. So we need to take action to control gangs, limit their activities and hopefully abolished them. If done so, we will see a safe society.
References:
Figure 1 Top: http://www.searchforvideo.com/music/g/gang-of-four/
Video: http://www.fugly.com/videos/12180/Gang_beating_-_Brutal_gang_initiation.html
Carlie, Michael K, Ph.D. (2002). Into the Abyss: A personal journey into the world of street gangs. Retrieved September 20, 2009 from http://www.faculty.missouristate.edu/M/MichaelCarlie/what_I_learned _about/GANGS/join_a_gang.htm
Leading The Fight Against Gangs in the
SparTech Software. (1998-2009). MS-13. Retrieved September 22, 2009 from http://www.altereddimensions.net/crime/MS13Gang.aspx
Walker, Robert. (1999-2009). Gangs or Us. Retrieved September 20, 2009 from http://www.gangsorus.com/initiations.html
