Is it hard to survive in prison if you are young and don't choose gang sides?

It is not going to be easy but it definitely can be done. If this is a jail with heavy gang activity like Cook County, Illinois or Los Angeles County, California there might be the need to align with people of your own race. This is more important if you have a long sentence. If 
somebody
 is 
threatening
y ou
 in 
jail, 
you
 need 
to 
make 
some
 friends.
 People 
won’t
 be
 as
 likely 
to 
fight
 with 
you
 if 
you 
have
friends 
because somebody
 might
 stick 
up
 for
 you.
 Acting
 scared
 and 
showing 
your 
weakness
 won’t
 improve
 things 
–
 you
 need
 to 
be 
willing 
to
 stand
up 
for
yourself 
or
 at
 least 
act
 like
 you
 are 
willing
 to if
 somebody
 tries
 to 
start
 something. 
Nobody
 will
 respect
you 
if 
you 
don’t
 stick
up 
for
 yourself 
–
 confidence 
is 
key. This 
doesn’t 
mean 
that 
you
 need 
to 
throw
 a
punch 
or
 fight, 
just that 
you
 need 
to 
be
 willing 
to 
protect 
yourself
 if 
anybody
 attacks 
you.
 This 
is
unlikely
 if
 you
 know 
what
 you
 are
 doing
 in
 jail,
 but
 be
 prepared
 for
 the 
possibility
 of
 violence.