If only it was as easy as this.
4. Beat Down
The most common form of gang initiation is one you would expect from these type of people. In order to prove yourself as worthy to be in said gang, you must endure getting beat up by either a specific large individual, or the entire gang itself. I'm not talking about a little "middle-school" round of bloody knuckles either, you could (will) be thrown against the ground, jumped on repeatedly, smashed in the face a hundred times, kicked in the privates another hundred times, and punched in the gut all while people hold you down and restrain you. (Some gangs may even use weapons such as baseball bats)
Some more recent gangs have resorted to even more barbaric initiations.
If you're lucky, you could expect a couple bruises on your face and back along with a few scrapes and cuts on your legs. In other cases, you could be beaten to the point of permanent psychological and/or physical damage. Worst yet, some people have been known to die from such initiations.
Alterations have been made of this initiations such as receiving a single semi-fatal blow into the sternum, being forced to fight and beat your future gang "amigos", fighting your way out of a circling group of pain and even picking up randomly dispersed pennies off the ground as you push through a crowd of gang members trying to beat your eyes out of their sockets.
3. "Blood In"
There's a common phrase in the social structure of gangs, "blood in, blood out". What this means is that it requires "blood" or murder to get into the gang, and your "blood" to get out of the gang. In other words, kill someone to get into the gang and if you try to leave the gang, they kill you. Almost nothing else says "hey, I'm a loyal, well-committed guy" than murdering someone for the right to enter such gang, which is why "blood in" such a common gang initiation.
It's so common that they have books written about it!
If you are to join a gang by the "blood in" initiation, you might be given a target ranging from an innocent bystander across the street from where you live, to a police officer. It doesn't matter how "high-profile" the target may be, you must finish the job using any means necessary, in order to get in. Obviously if you fail and are caught in the act, you'll find yourself a new group of friends in your cozy jail cell.
2. Jacked in
Instead of having to fight or kill someone, they may ask you to steal a valuable trophy item or even commit petty theft as the cost of joining said gang. You must literally "jack" the assigned item and return it without six police helicopters behind you, and you're as good as in. This is commonly depicted in TV shows and movies since it's one of the most "innocent" crimes you can commit as a minor, and can easily lead the protagonist to convenient capture, and life-changing realizations of moral values and almost instantaneous acceptance and satisfaction of life.
"Thanks to the power of gangs, my life is now full of fulfillment and content!"
1. "Sexed-in"
This initiation is most common among female candidates. Since nobody has the guts to beat a "girl", (I mean, their parents must have taught them better than that!) they'll force you into sexual relations with multiple gang members in order to get accepted into the gang. Sometimes, to test your guts, they'll force you to have sexual relations with someone that is HIV-positive or some other sexually transmitted disease, just to see if you're willing to give up your body for the sake of the gang.
All I can say is that it'll be a lot less artistic than this picture.
