Hell's Angels Identity

Imagine riding across an open highway with all your brothers. Your Harleys are roaring through the canyons and valleys, deep down you fear nothing because no one in their right mind would bother you. This is what it is like to ride as a member of the Hells Angels. The Hells Angels are a motorcycle club known to be associated with drug trafficking. Before they became a motorcycle club, the group started as a crew manning a B-29 Superfortress named “Hell’s Angels”. The crew flew missions over Europe during World War Two until they were retired after . After the war was over they formed their own motorcycle club. According to Peter Tamony, author of “The Hell’s Angels: Their naming” in the Western folklore, he states that “The original group denominated …show more content…
Every motorcycle club in the United States of America has a logo on the back of their leather or jean vest. This logo is what gives every motorcycle club their own identity. In addition to the logo, the vest also has two rockers, one above the logo and one underneath it. The top rocker states the organization they are representing, the bottom states which chapter they belong to, also known as what region of the motorcycle club they ride represent. Furthermore, some motorcycle clubs require their members to ride a certain brand of bikes. Carlo Morselli, a professor at the Ecole de criminologie, Universite de Montreal wrote in “Hells Angels in Springtime”, “The organization's name and it’s skull logo are officially registered under the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation and is protected by international law” (146-147). This skull found on the back of their leather vests is their notorious logo. It is crucially important to the Hells Angels image, they have gone as far as having it registered and protected by international law, this reveals they do not take lightly to anyone attempts to copy their logo. Although the skull logo is an important symbol of their identity, they also have several chapters that represent different regions within the United States and other foreign countries, to include England. In addition, each chapter has their own …show more content…
In addition, their violent activities and affiliation with drug trafficking transitioned them into a criminal organization. None of the 1 percent motorcycle clubs are racially diverse. For the example, the Hells Angels are a Caucasian group similar to the Banditos, which are an all Latin motorcycle club. According to the BBC documentary, Hells Angels, a group of rockers attempted to form their own chapter in Windsor, England, but did not go about it in the proper fashion. In addition, they were wearing the Hells Angels logo without permission and had another Hells Angels taboo by having a member that is African American. This resulted with the official Hells Angels retaliating with guns and violence. This reveals to the world the extent to which the organization will go to in order to protect their name and image from being copied by fake charters that do not register and follow their rules. Being a fake charter was not the only reason the Hells Angels resorted to violence. In order to make money and keep the organization functioning, the Hells Angels began to transition into illegal activities. Morselli states, “This gang exists only for the commission of lucrative crimes that serve to enrich the gang and its members. The most frequent of these crimes is illegal drug trafficking, but other crimes, such as intimidation, assault, use