Proud Boys “Initiation Ritual” Video Goes Viral For Its Absurdity

November 16, 2020, 7:31 am*

A video allegedly showing a Proud Boys initiation ritual has resurfaced, and it’s a pretty embarrassing look for the group.

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The Proud Boys have been in the news often as of late, first because of President Trump telling them to “stand by” rather than denounce white supremacy at one of the debates, and most recently because they showed up at the sparsely attended “Million MAGA March” over the weekend to help protest his landslide loss.

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Now, a video taken in 2017 during a “free speech” rally in Boston is making the rounds again. In it, a bunch of white men in the yellow twin tipped Fred Perry polo shirts that have become their signature look stand around the man who is there to be initiated into the group.

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He repeats after one guy in what appears to be a “Make America Great Again” hat as he feeds him lines: “I am a Proud Boy. I am a western chauvinist. And I refuse to apologize for creating a modern world.”

At the leader’s command, a handful of Boys surrounding the new recruit lightly pummel him as he lists off names of cereal brands, and he is welcomed into the group after 45 seconds, start to finish.

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As noted, it’s difficult not to laugh at the absurdity of the whole “initiation.”

Funny how representatives of the “master race” always looks like they were scraped off of the toilet bowl of humanity

— Rob Sheridan (@rob_sheridan) November 14, 2020

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Definitely repelling intelligent women.

— Schultzy (@SchultzyTexas) November 14, 2020

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IKR?
They sure do like touching one another.

— LM Taylor (@dollyllamaX) November 14, 2020

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But at the same time, other people pointed out that this lends credence to the claim that the Proud Boys are a gang and that they are prone to violence. It’s also apparent from the video that a commitment to Trump is fairly standard among them, and the majority of them are white men.

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Reminder that the same boys who believe they share credit for “creating the modern world” simply because they’re “Western” white men also rage at the idea they also share blame for slavery, on which “Western” civilization was built.

— Josh Hinton (@joshhinton89) November 14, 2020

The “proud boys” feel tough in groups because they are mocked individually.
They are the guys in your hometown who peaked in high school, have been divorced twice, don’t pay their child support, have shit credit, still say brewski, and wear Tap Out shirts too tight.

— Cling 2 Reality (@Cling2Reality) November 15, 2020

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Some people are still out here claiming the Proud Boys aren’t a hate group and aren’t interested in instigating violence, but as pathetic as this initiation video is, it doesn’t seem like much of a leap to assume a group of people who force their members to withstand violence prior to joining have every intention of getting involved in violence with others later on.

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*First Published: November 16, 2020, 7:30 am