Hells Angels facts for kids
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| Abbreviation |
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|---|---|
| Founded | March 17, 1948 |
| Founder | Otto Friedli |
| Founded at | Fontana, California, United States |
| Type | Outlaw motorcycle club |
| Headquarters | Oakland, California, United States |
|
Region
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Worldwide (592 charters in 66 countries) |
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Membership
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6,000 |
|
Key people
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Sonny Barger |
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC) is an international outlaw motorcycle club whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Common nicknames for the club are the "H.A.", "Red & White", and "81". With a membership of over 6,000, and 592 charters in 66 countries, the HAMC is the largest "outlaw" motorcycle club in the world.
Contents
History
The Hells Angels originated on March 17, 1948, in Fontana, California, when several small motorcycle clubs agreed to merge. Otto Friedli, a World War II veteran, is credited with starting the club. According to an alternative theory, the Hells Angels were founded on November 15, 1951, in San Bernardino, by Dick White, a member of the Redlands Road Runners.
According to its website, the club's name was suggested by Arvid Olsen, an associate of the founders who had served in the "Hell's Angels" squadron of the Flying Tigers in China during World War II.
The club's first official charter was reportedly drawn up in Fontana in 1950. The club became prominent within, and established its notoriety as part of, the 1960s counterculture movement in San Francisco.
Insignia
The Hells Angels' official website attributes the official "death's head" insignia design to Frank Sadilek, past president of the San Francisco charter. The colors and shape of the early-style jacket emblem (before 1953) were copied from the insignias of the 85th Fighter Squadron and the 552nd Medium Bomber Squadron.
The Hells Angels have a system of patches similar to military medals. The specific meaning of each patch is not publicly known, but the patches identify each biker's specific or significant actions or beliefs. The official colors of the Hells Angels are red lettering displayed on a white background—hence the club's nickname "The Red and White". The patches are worn on leather or denim jackets and vests.
Red and white are also used to display the number 81 on many patches, as in "Support 81", "Route 81". The 8 and 1 stand for the respective positions in the alphabet of H and A. Friends and supporters of the club use these in deference to club rules, which purport to restrict the wearing of Hells Angels imagery to club members. The diamond-shaped one-percenter patch is also used, displaying "1%" in red on a white background with a red merrowed border. The term "one-percenter" is said to be a response to the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) comment on the Hollister incident to the effect that 99% of motorcyclists were law-abiding citizens and 1% were outlaws. The AMA has no record of such a statement and calls this story apocryphal.
Most members wear a rectangular patch (again, white background with red letters and a red merrowed border) identifying their respective charter locations. Another similarly designed patch reads "Hells Angels". When applicable, members of the club wear a patch denoting their position or rank within the organization. The patch is rectangular and, like those described above, displays a white background with red letters and a red merrowed border. Some examples of the titles used are President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Sergeant at Arms. This patch is usually worn above the charter location patch. Some members also wear an "AFFA" patch, which stands for "Angels Forever; Forever Angels", referring to their lifelong membership in the club (i.e., "once a member, always a member").
"Angels Forever, Forever Angels" is also the club's traditional motto. Another Hells Angels slogan is "When we do right, nobody remembers. When we do wrong, nobody forgets".
Membership
To become a Hells Angels "prospect", candidates must have a valid driver's license, a motorcycle over 750cc (46 cu in), and "the right combination of personal qualities." Members in North America are required to ride U.S.-built motorcycles; Harley-Davidson bikes are most common in the club, although other American brands, such as Victory and Indian, are also permitted.
Organization
The Hells Angels became the first notarized and organized outlaw motorcycle club, and the biker clubs formed subsequently have reportedly imitated the Angels' insignias, rules, doctrines and rituals. Hells Angels charters are governed by an officer corps, consisting of a president, vice president, secretary/treasurer, sergeant-at-arms and road captain. Charters are composed of between ten and twelve members on average. Each charter has autonomy regarding member discipline and minor policy changes.
In contrast to other prominent motorcycle clubs in the United States, the Hells Angels organization is not headed by a national or international president; it is instead governed by regional officers, who are each chosen to represent a collective of localized charters at monthly regional meetings. Regional officers are divided into two groups: those who attend the West Coast Officers Meeting ("WesCOM") to conduct the policy, actions, and affairs of the Hells Angels' charters in the Western United States, and those who attend the East Coast Officers Meeting ("ECOM") to govern the charters in the Eastern United States. The dividing point of the east and west regions is Omaha, Nebraska. In states with multiple charters, weekly state meetings are also held in addition to charter meetings.
Although the Hells Angels have no official "mother charter ", the club's de facto national headquarters remained in its founding location of San Bernardino, California until 1958. The club's unofficial headquarters was then relocated to Oakland, California. Any motorcycle club seeking to join to the Hells Angels must apply to the Oakland charter for membership, and the applicant club must be monitored and approved of by the Oakland Hells Angels before being granted membership.
See also
In Spanish: Hells Angels para niños
- List of outlaw motorcycle clubs
