Tomorrow is Easter, which means the NYPD is getting ready for a different kind of tradition: The so-called gang initiation rites. Last year, there were multiple brawls, shootings and arrests in and near Penn Station and Times Square, which was enough violence for Mayor Bloomberg to call it "wilding". Now, the Post reports, "The NYPD and Midtown merchants are bracing for another Easter Sunday (or 'Gang Initiation Day') wilding session -- with extra patrols and boosted security ready to take on marauding gangs looking to terrorize Times Square and nearby businesses" more ›

One Brooklyn Heights resident alerted fellow neighbors about possible gang activity in the neighborhood this week, after spotting four unruly teenagers on Hicks. more ›

It's so hard to keep up with Gang Initiation Day! Is it on Easter, or around Halloween, or both... or neither. Cops are on alert again as the annual Halloween rumor settles upon us, which typically alerts the city of a Bloods-induced bloodbath that has potential new members slashing hundreds of innocent people. Of course, the NYPD notes that this is somewhat of an urban legend, and actual gang bloodshed hasn't gone down since 1995. more ›

Tomorrow many New Yorkers will be coming together to celebrate notions of rebirth and unity—not just in churches around town for Easter Sunday, but in Times Square as well for the lesser known and more violent "Gang Initiation Day." The Post says that the high holy day has become an annual ritual for local gangs—in 2006, they say that more than 200 gang members came through the area with three stabbings being reported. One cop told them, "It's the same nonsense every year. It's been going on a long time." The McDonald's in Times Square is one of many businesses that closed down in the wake of the '06 incidents and this year will have double its normal security on hand. a manager told the paper, "They come in, they throw chairs, they throw cups of ice at each other. It's a disaster." more ›