I ran across this on the internet on one of those news sites and clipped it here. It is a "fluff piece" but there is some interesting information in it. I remember reading about the "Hells Angels " in some books my Dad had called "Crime and Punishment" from the mid 70's and it was far harsher on the organization than this fluff piece, particularly about it running guns, drugs, and treatment of women. Women were considered "bitches" and "property" of whomever they belonged to and the biker would pimp them out for gas, grass and bike repairs. Apparently the organization had tried with some success to revamp their image since the 60's and 70's.
According
to investigative journalist Julian Sher, those looking to join a Hells
Angel charter start as a “hang around.” As the name implies, hang
arounds are bikers who get invited to some Hells Angels events so both
parties can get a feel for one another.
Before
you’re officially a part of the group, you’re called a “prospect,” a
name that gets stitched into your vest. These tentative members run
errands that Sher describes as “gopher work.”
The
easiest way to recognize a Hells Angel is by the insignia on their
vest. When a prospect becomes a full-fledged member, they get a vest
with the famous logo and name on the back. Julian Sher explains that
these vests are considered sacred to members.
If
one of the bikers gets arrested, he’ll hand his vest to a fellow member
to avoid tainting it in jail. If they get hurt and need an emergency
procedure, they’ll do whatever possible to prevent the vest from being
cut or torn off.
The rules vary slightly from charter to charter, but there’s generally a dress code that members follow. One member told
Inside The Angels that he could only wear black jeans, shirts, and vests when he joined.
Some
groups won’t even allow shorts! While some charters sport all black
wear, some allow blue jeans and camouflage patterns. The color and
design codes can help distinguish which charter you belong to and
further establish that you’re a part of the group
The Hells
Angels biker groups can be quite large, taking up an entire street as
they ride. What you may not have known is that there’s an order that
they maintain while riding. The road captain and charter president
remain at the front of the group.
From
there, the bikers align based on seniority and rank. The older members
will stay closer to the front, followed by newer members and ending with
prospects in the back.
Since the Hells
Angels have a particular order to maintain, if one of them gets pulled
over by a cop, they all stop. Sticking together not only helps keep
everyone in their place, but also signifies how the brotherhood is
linked like family.
If
you mess with one Hells Angel, you mess with them all. People are not
too likely to start trouble with a huge mass of bikers around who have a
history of being tough.
Given the Hells
Angels’ history with law enforcement, it’s no wonder that they aren’t
allowed to work for a prison while in the group. Members also cannot be
police officers due to the conflict of interest.
Hells
Angels have been known to engage in criminal activity at times. The
group stands for freedom in the sense that they run by their own rules,
so prison guards and law enforcement officers wouldn’t exactly fit in
with the crowd
Another
reason Hells Angels can’t be in law enforcement is because the group
has a strict discretionary policy. If a member were to rat out a fellow
brother, they could expect to get kicked out of the group.
The
Hells Angels website clearly states, “We do not answer questions about
members,” not even missing ones. Their secrecy is meant to keep everyone
in the group protected as they place loyalty to one another above all
else
Once
you’re an official Hells Angel, there’s no backing out. Members don’t
retire, and the only time they exit the group is if they’re kicked out
for breaking a rule. Your charter essentially becomes a second family.
The
Hells Angels spend a ton of time together and members have already
known one another for years by the time they join. When one of them
passes away, everyone unites to honor the memory of their fallen brother
Since the Hells Angels are very secretive in their activities, none
of them are allowed to talk to the media. This not only protects the
group as a whole but also helps enforce the rule that members don’t talk
about one another.
Investigator
Julian Sher says members are forbidden from talking to others about
their codes since it’s part of their security. By keeping as many things
to themselves as possible, they mitigate the risk of information
leaking.
To be a Hells Angel, you don’t just
need to be any biker; you need to be a very specific type of
motorcyclist. As we’ve mentioned, the recruitment process can take years
because they only accept those that are like family.
One
part of being the right kind of biker is owning a Harley Davidson.
Riding only Harleys is a Hells Angels tradition that runs along the same
lines as the sacred vest. It holds value because its a part of what
makes them who they are
According
to their website, the Hells Angels ride around 20,000 kilometers
together every year. That’s more than 12,000 miles! Members need to be
true motorcycle fanatics to fit in, meaning that their bike is their top
mode of transportation.
While
Hells Angels are like brothers, their connection is founded on their
shared love of motorcycles. Riding is their outward expression of
freedom and the closest they get to feeling completely liberated. As
such, they’ll happily spend hours on the road
If you really take the
Hells Angels way of life seriously, then the highlight of your day is
attending one of their activities. Members who fail to show up to
meetings and hangouts indicate to others that they are missing the point
of the club.
The
biker brotherhood is known for having a strict attendance code. Those
who continually miss events are seen as disrespectful and are not likely
to make it past the “hanging around” phase of recruitment.
A part of what makes Hells Angels so drawn to gatherings is that the
members become like family. Not only do they get to do what they love by
riding bikes, but they also get to do it with other people who feel the
exact same way.
Their
passion runs much deeper than just excitement over motorcycles. Hells
Angels is about a way of life, a belief system, that all of its members
profoundly connect through
The Hells Angels have a deep bond that is meant to last a lifetime.
With that connection comes commitment, meaning that members shouldn’t
even consider joining another biker club.
Likewise,
members need to be careful about who they associate with. The website
warns, “Never combine your support to Hells Angels with other clubs,
street gangs, or others if you are unaware of the relationship between
those others and the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club.” In other words,
anything members choose to support has to fit in with the group as a
whole.
Hells Angels refers to itself as a brotherhood; thus, you’ll only see
men with the death head insignias on their back. Though women aren’t
technically in the club, they do play a major role in it.
Many
of the Hells Angels have wives and families. If he’s going to be a part
of the crew, then his partner has to understand the commitment and be
okay with the lifestyle and all that comes with it.
As with joining a charter, creating one doesn’t just happen
overnight. The Hells Angels website explains, “Motorcycle Clubs consist
of people who have ridden together for years, live in the same area, are
known by the community, have runs and parties, and are a brotherhood.”
It
takes years, even decades, to become that established. Only then would
you consider morphing your group into a Hells Angels charter. That’s why
the website states that when you’re ready to start a charter, you won’t
have to ask how.
Breaking the Hells Angels rules puts members in a position they’ll
strongly regret. Since the motor club is secretive and full of loyal
participants, there’s no telling what will be done to someone who
betrays the brotherhood.
Investigator
Julian Sher claims that the group has burned off the tattoos of past
members who broke the rules. The worst form of punishment is being
kicked out of the club, resulting in complete banishment from other
members.
Grammar nerds will have already noticed that Hells Angels is missing
an apostrophe. Since the angels belong to hell, there should be a
possessive apostrophe between “Hell” and “s.” The group is all about
breaking the rules, so it’s fitting they don’t obey the grammar.
Their
website simply states, “Yes, we know there is an apostrophe missing but
it is you who miss it. We don’t.” Plus, there was already a 1930 war
film called
Hell’s Angels when the biker club started
Though members despise people who aren’t in the club wearing the
Hells Angels insignia, there is merchandise fans can buy to support the
group. Hells Angels has a support shop where non-members can show their
appreciation for the bikers’ way of life.
Members
love getting the support because proceeds who to local charters. The
more merchandise they sell, the more events that they can put on for
fellow bikers and other community members to enjoy.
Given their reputation as tough guys, you would think the Hells
Angels wouldn’t be concerned about what substances its members use. The
truth is the group is very strict about any members using illicit
substances.
The Toronto based chapter of the club told
The Star,
“All ‘contact or use of [substances] is strictly forbidden’ as is the
use of needles ‘for pleasure.’” The bottom line is this — stay clean or
get kicked out of the club.
Another rule about the Hells Angels that isn’t as surprising as it
sounds is this — you cannot link to the club’s website without express
written consent. Because of how protective the club is of its members,
this rule makes complete sense.
As
the rule is written on their website, it reads, “You may not establish
and/ or operate links to this website without the prior written consent
of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. Such consent may be withdrawn at
any time at the Hells Angels MCs own discretion.”
Once you officially become a prospect to join the Hells Angels, there
is one big rule you have to follow. You cannot, under any
circumstances, retaliate against hazing. This is important because the
process can often be a violent one.
According
to the club’s bylaws, this practice is not done to belittle potential
members, but is instead seen as a test of their character. If you
retaliate, you are not deemed worthy to continue the initiation process.
While it is possible for supporters of the Hells Angels to buy
merchandise, only club members are allowed to wear official merchandise.
The club takes this rule as seriously as they do the patches on their
vests.
If
you are caught wearing merchandise intended to impersonate the Hells
Angels, you can expect retaliation. Just make sure that if you do plan
to support the club, you are going through the proper channels!
As members grow with the Hells Angels and rise through the ranks of
the club, they are given patches. These patches are seen as sacred
symbols and must be respected with the utmost care.
The
rules about protecting these sacred patches are so strict it is even
rumored that Hells Angels members must refuse to let doctors cut through
the patches if bodily trauma needs to be taken care of!
Despite their tough reputation, it should be clear by now that the
Hells Angels require members to show quite a bit of respect and
restraint. This rule even applies to their interactions with women.
Any
member must get consent. Taking advantage of women is unacceptable and
the club has a zero tolerance policy towards this behavior. Break that
policy and a member will find themselves in a world of hurt!
As respectful as the organization can seem, the Hells Angels are also
very secretive and protective about its members. This protection even
extends to anyone associated with the club who has gone missing.
Members,
as you know, are not allowed to talk to the media about members, but
they also should not discuss other members with anyone not associated
with the club. This not only protects the privacy of members, but it
also protects them from law enforcement when necessary.
Across the Hells Angels organization, it is widely accepted that the
only motorcycles members can ride are Harley Davidsons. We even wrote it
as one of the rules earlier. While most charters abide by this rule,
some will allow members to ride non-Harleys as long as their bikes are
American made.
One
of the other acceptable bikes, according to some charters, are Buell
Motorcycles, a brand that was originally established in Wisconsin in
1983.
Once you join the Hells Angels, you are considered family, which
means that no matter what else is going on in your life, the club comes
first. Being a member means having voting rights and being an active
participant in the club, and you are expected to value this above all
else.
Because
it is a lifetime commitment, and even wives are expected to understand
they come second to the club, you must fully embrace your new lifestyle.
You won’t have time to join a yacht club any time soon.
As a club so rooted in rules and history, it is only recently that
the Hells Angels have begun accepting more culturally diverse members to
join. Throughout its lifespan, the club has been predominantly
Caucasian, although it is not uncommon for those with Hispanic heritage
to join.
As
far as other cultures go, acceptance again varies from chapter to
chapter. Some have loosened their rules, while others have stayed rooted
in the past.
When club members gather for meetings, they still have to follow the
rules. These guidelines are known as Robert’s Rules of Order. Invented
in 1876, Robert’s Rules were initially designed for business meetings,
but they have crossed over into Hell’s Angels.
Robert’s
Rules tell members how to hold a democratic meeting. They must stick to
the agenda, interrupt only when necessary, and can raise questions
before the assembly. If a Hell’s Angel breaks one of these rules, they
may be fined $100.
If you want to join Hells Angels, you’ll have to hang around them
first. If you get noticed, you’ll become a prospect. Prospects have a
trial run where they work with Hell’s Angels for a while before getting
their vest. When a member of the gang doesn’t have the “Hell’s Angels”
logo or color on their vest, they’re a prospect.
Prospects
pick up the dirty work that members don’t want to do. For example, they
may set up the meeting room before other members arrive. After their
“trial period,” prospects receive the Hell’s Angels logo on their vest,
making them a full member.
Certain groups in Hells Angels ride through specific areas. If one
group has “claimed” that area, it’s theirs. No other gang can hang
around that spot unless they’re driving through, even if they are also a
part of Hells Angels.
Hells
Angels have known rivals from other motorcycle clubs such as the
Outlaws Motorcycle Club. If a Hells Angels group hangs around an area,
no other motorcycle group can try to claim it. In some cities, members
of each group go to separate hospitals to not run into each other.
Although Hells Angels have the reputation of being a dangerous gang,
they occasionally run charities. Every year, they hold a toy drive for
Toys for Tots. One time, they donated 200 bikes to the Poverello House, a
nonprofit organization that aids the homeless.
Hells
Angels frequently run motorcycle rides for charity, even letting other
riders join. Even so, the members are aware that most people don’t know
them for their charity. Their motto states: “When we do right, nobody
remembers. When we do wrong, nobody forgets.”
Don’t be afraid of talking to a Hells Angel. The members live by a
code of respect; if you treat them well, they’ll treat you well.
Journalists who have interviewed Hells Angels describe them as
“inviting” and “incredibly welcoming.”
Hells
Angels are also known to help their neighbors with issues and
occasionally aid strangers. If you treat the riders well, you’ll have no
problem interacting with a Hells Angel. But if you treat them poorly,
expect them to do the same.
You may see some Hells Angels standing around at concerts. Don’t
fret; they are frequently hired as concert security. It began in 1961,
when George Harrison brought some Hells Angels from San Francisco over
to London for a Beatles concert. The bikers’ respect earned the respect
of the Beatles.
Since
then, many bands have hired Hells Angels as a form of local security.
The bikers get to attend the concert and earn some extra money on the
side. It’s also an opportunity to show off their Hells Angels pride.
Since Hells Angels centers around motorcycle riding, deaths happen.
When a member dies–especially a young member–the Hells Angels go out of
their way to keep that person’s memory alive. They may hang up posters,
ride with that person’s photos, or tell their story at a meeting.
In
2019, 21-year-old Hells Angel member Clay Hubbard passed away on his
birthday. His mother delivered the news to the motorcycle group.
Although she felt intimidated, the group comforted her and even prayed
with her in a parking lot. She gave the members a bracelet so Clay could
“ride along with them on their rides.”
Hells Angels don’t only operate within their own group. They
emphasize community involvement, and many members join local charities
and events. It’s not uncommon to see Hells Angels support the same bars
and shops in their neighborhood.
At
one point, a Hells Angels group discovered that their local bar was
raising money for SELF School. The nonprofit donated educational
resources to disabled children and cancer patients. Immediately, the
group volunteered to help and raised money for the supplies. That’s one
of many ways in which Hells Angels support their local communities
By now you know how important it is to protect the brand of the Hells
Angels, but we haven’t discussed just far the club is willing to go in
this regard. While you might think the rules on this would lean towards
violence, sometimes the club goes by the rules of the law.
The Hells Angels have sued several large companies in order to protect their brand, including Disney after the movie
Wild Hogs was released.
Perhaps the most important rule that the Hells Angels follow is this –
they follow their own rules. The rules that society has created don’t
concern them. Once you join the club, you have your set of rules to live
by.
In
one publication about the club, it is written, “They, of course, didn’t
have jobs. They despised everything that most Americans pursue –
stability, security. They rode their bikes, hung out in bars for days at
a time, fought with anyone who messed with them. They were
self-contained, with their own set of rules, their own code of behavior.
It was extraordinary.”
For the most part, it’s commonly accepted that the Hells Angels were
officially formed on March 17, 1948 in Fontana, California. The founders
included the Bishop family as well as a few other World War II veterans
that came together from various post-war motorcycle clubs.
Despite
various news and criminal reports, the Hell’s Angels say they got their
start because It was started because military surplus made motorcycles
affordable, and post-war life had left many young men feeling stagnant
and missing their sense of soldier comradery.
The name Hells Angels were believed to have been suggested by an
associate of the founding members named Arvid Olson. Olson had served in
the Flying Tigers “Hell’s Angels” squadron in China during World War
II.
The
nickname “Hell’s Angels” is one of the many nicknames that came about
from the tradition of American soldiers giving their squadron fierce and
intimidating nicknames in World War I and II.
In the early years, the club began to spread across California
moderately quickly. According to the founder of the Oakland charter
Ralph “Sonny” Barger, the earliest charters in California were founded
in San Francisco, Oakland, Gardena, Fontana, and a few other
lesser-known areas.
At
the time, the charters were only concerned with themselves and were
unaware of all the other charters that existed. Eventually, during the
1950s, the different groups came together and unified to establish a
large-scale organization and implement a system of internal codes and
criteria for admission
During the 1960s, the Hells Angels became a large part of the
counterculture movement, especially in California. They were very
prominent in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco and were
frequent attendees of the local music and social events.
Numerous
members were also connected to the counterculture’s primary leaders in
music and expression, such as Ken Kesey, the Merry Pranksters, Allen
Ginsberg, Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead, the Rolling Stones, and
more.
The Hells Angels, as well as a select other few motorcycle clubs,
call themselves a one-percenter biker club. The phrase is a 50-year-old
title that goes off the old saying that 1% of troublemakers give a bad
name to 99% of bikers.
The
name is supposed to help them separate from all of the negative
stereotypes surrounding biker gangs and the Hells Angels in particular.
Despite the name, numerous members have been convicted of crimes ranging
from murder to selling narcotics.
In the beginning, the Hells Angels were strictly based in California
but spread internationally in 1961. That year, the first charter outside
of California began in Auckland, New Zealand. This opened the
floodgates and the motorcycle club began to spread around the world.
In
1969, the first European charter was opened in London. There are now
more than 275 charters in Europe alone. From the 1970s to now, there
have been charters established in Australia, Brazil, South Africa,
Eastern Europe, and more. New areas are currently being prospected.
The Hells Angels have a fairly obvious way of letting people know who
they are. They will almost always be seen wearing a leather or denim
“cut” which is slang for a motorcycle vest. On the cut, they have
various patches such as Hells Angels written on the back with the name
of their charter at the bottom.
If
they are a full member, they will also have the red and white-winged
“death head” logo, the letters HAMC (Hells Angels Motorcycle Club) and
the number 81. 81 stands of the letters H and A with H being the eighth
letter of the alphabet and A being the first. Over the course of their
time in the club, a member can also earn other patches
Becoming a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club is no easy
task. It is a process that can take up to a few years to achieve if you
even make it that far.
To
start, you must have a valid motorcycle license, own a Harley Davidson
motorcycle over 750 CC and have a personality that is cohesive with the
rest of the club. You cannot have been accused of child molestation or
have ever applied to become a police officer or prison guard. Other
requirements are unknown to the general public.
