...Frawley August 9, 2013 Hollister and the Death of Family Riding In 1947 a riot occurred that caused authorities to say, "The trouble was caused by the 1% deviant that tarnishes the public image of both motorcycles and motorcyclists.” –Anonymous. In response most bikers sum up their feeling this way, “A 1%er is the one of a hundred of us who have given up on society, So stay out of our face. If you don’t think this way then walk away.” These quotes sum up the world of the outlaw biker. The first is a short attempt to explain away the mess in Hollister California 1947, the second is a subtle warning to walk away or face violence. In 1947 a small town in Central California named Hollister became the center point of the motorcycle world. This little town with a population of about 4,500 (US Census 1947) hosted an American Motorcycle Association (AMA) event that would forever change society’s perception of bikers and the world in which they live in. This normally quiet town’s peaceful record was shattered by violence and destruction changing the world of the motorcyclists forever. This of course is the media’s dramatic account of the episode. Pushed by American news agencies, that stereotype led to the formation of the Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs, and their integration into our society. One bit of dramatic licensing led to the formation of a billion dollar a year industry of drug running, guns, extortion and murder. But is this the truth? How did this myth become fact...
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...Motorcycle Clubs People drive everyday whether it is to or from work, running errands or traveling and during this time it is very possible to have seen a group of motorcycle riders traveling together. Many people believe motorcycle clubs are gangs and its members are angry, intimidating and violent people looking for trouble. In reality most clubs and their members are every day, upstanding citizens that have families and productive jobs who just like to ride and socialize with similar individuals who share the same passion. History can be traced all the way back to 1903 in New York where The Federation of American Motorcyclist was organized to protect the rights and address issues important to motorcycle riders. Due to an increase of popularity and riders, on November 15, 1916 The Motorcycle and Allied Trades Association was established to represent and regulate the motorcycle manufacturers and accessory makers and distributors. Eventually the FAM ended and the M&ATA began registering riders and sponsoring events and by early 1924 it claimed to have over 10,000 members. On May 15 the M&ATA proposed to create the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) division which would control rider registration and activities, issue sanctions for national events and serve motorcycle industry members. Motorcycle Clubs or MCs started forming around World War II era, one of the earliest and possible first club was the Outlaws Motorcycle Club established in 1935 in...
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...Motorcycle Gangs: From Outlaws to Any Joe Throughout history any person that rode a motorcycle was considered an outlaw or some sort of bad ass. The beginning days of motorcycle gangs weren’t the everyday Joe that had a nine to five job. These people were in their own class and were feared by anyone that crossed their path, but times have changed. Now anyone can ride a motorcycle without being labeled as a deviant outlaw. From the 1950 to today, the world has changed their perspect on a person that rides a motorcycle. Motorcycle gangs began after the veterans of World War Two returned home. Many of the return veterans started to ride motorcycles to feel the excitement that replaced the emotions from the war. On 4th of July 1946 the American Motorcycle Association held a motorcycle event in the small city of Hollister, California. At that time there were two motorcycle gangs that were know as the Pissed Off Bastards of Bloomington and the other gang was known as the Market Street Commandoes (CTGIA). The small city was filled with bikers and the police department consisted of only seven officers. The night got rowdy and the officers arrested one of the P.O.B.O.B. The gang ordered the police to release their fellow member and when they refused, the gang tore the city apart. This one event created history for motorcycle gangs because from that day on their will always be a July 4th run and the one percent image came into play. The Pissed Off Bastards of Bloomington...
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...Motorcycle Clubs At the end of World War II many American military personnel returned home broken and missing the friendships of the military life. Many of these young men and women were trained and used motorcycles in battle. After returning home from World War II these same men would end up together to form motorcycle riding clubs. As innocent as these origins may have started, the stigmata that has been associated with motorcycle clubs is wrong (Thompson, 2005). Just because it’s a Motorcycle club, doesn’t mean that they are outlaws. When the word biker is mentioned, most people think of the stereotypical dirty, unshaven, leather wearing, criminal. When the truth is only a small number of bikers are these, they’re called one per centers. This means that that they live outside the law as only one percent of society does. These groups have given the other riders a bad name (Brotherman, 2009). With some motorcycle clubs committing crimes, it has been hard to shake the negative stereotypes. These crimes include murder, rape, and drug dealing (Thompson, 2005). With such a negative projection by these criminal clubs it’s hard to see past the bad stereotypes. There are positive clubs out there that are trying hard to shake this misconception. As they look to other countries, and their laws, there will be many legal means of getting rid of these bad apples (Veno, 2009). The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is the rights advocate for bikers in America and they fight hard...
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...In this essay I will prove that in the story “White Fantasy-Black Fact” by Jack Davis, people continually judge each other without necessarily meaning to. Often times people like to believe that we live in a world where everyone is equal, but that is not always the case. Even though we have come a long way from the way things were in the past with racism and discrimination, it still exists in the time of this story and it still exists today. In the beginning of the story, a bus driver is driving around thinking about his family, and his new baby, Peggy Sue, it mentions that he dislikes violence, and cruelty to animals. He sends money overseas every year to help the less fortunate. He is happy to live in the country that he does. As it says on page 430 “He was glad he lived in a country that was white, where there was plenty for all, where nobody starved and where everyone was equal.” He seems like a good man, if not a little racist. However, when he approaches an aboriginal family, he doesn’t let them on his bus because he thinks they are disease ridden and dirty. He doesn’t want to bring home their germs to his wife and daughter. He knows nothing about this family but he judges them based on their looks alone, maybe because they aren’t white, because he prides himself on living in a “white” country. The aboriginal family of eight is then left on the side of the road with a problem; they have to get to Perth for the baby’s doctor’s appointment...
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...an inner quality like the carefree, rebellious mindset shared by these men? Perhaps the source lies beyond internal and external traits. Maybe we shouldn’t be so interested in these people, but rather the surrounding components that define them as bikers, bodybuilders, and surfers. These can be identified as the motorcycles, surfboards, dumbbells, and accessories that make these men who they are. It is through these machines that an overwhelming amount of masculinity can be depicted as the result of superhuman performances and accomplishments caught on camera, leaving other men questioning their manliness and inspiring a desire to achieve such a level of masculinity. The W170 Bodies in Motion: Surfers, Bikers, and Bodybuilders Photo Archive contains numerous pictures that give a closer look at these groups. One of these photos features a group of about eighteen bikers standing around their motorcycles, unaware of the picture being taken. By including their bikes in this picture, the entire image is shifted. The motorcycles instantly classify these people as “bikers” and the distance separating the viewer from the actual group labels them as a private motorcycle club or “gang”. This along with the common association between biker gangs and deviant activities cause many assumptions to be made by the viewer. This relates to Judith...
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...Personal Perception of Organized Crime Paper The United States is run by a democratic government that has laws in place to ensure order and organization. However, there are certain people and groups that wish to compromise and profit personally from breaking these laws. According to Understanding Organized Crime (2007), organized crime can be defined by the members and the activities of a group. There are many crimes in which organized crime might be involved, but what separates individual crime from crimes committed by groups of people is the term organized or organization. Organization has been described as a group of people who cooperate to accomplish objectives or goals. Organized crime has been around for centuries; from Outlaw gangs in the western days that robbed stage coaches, the pony express, and passengers of trains to today’s Blood and Crip gangs that dominate public streets for power over territories and drug sales. Gangs have been around for a long time imposing on the lives and liberties of law abiding citizens that wish to obey laws. Law abiding citizens have to live in imminent fear that their lives are not disrupted by the actions of these criminal organizations that wish to indulge in crime. In this paper, we will explore the various definitions, perception, characteristics of organized crime, and explore some high profile groups that indulge in different types of crimes. Perception of Organized Crime A University student named -------------- was asked how...
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...bomber jackets became poplar with not only the pilots, but all different divisions of the US Military. Military men could have patches stitched on they jacket representing their rank and your division. Wearing theses bomber jackets not only represented a strong military man, it represented power and prestige. Of course the bomber jacket became even more popular with a 1957 movie “Night Passage”, staring Jimmy Stewart, wearing a brown bomber jacket. But when the movie “The Wild One” hit the movie screens in 1953 staring Marlin Brando wearing a white t-shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and a Black Leather Jacket, this was when the black leather jacket made it day beau! Marlin Brando played a character named Johnny who was the leader of a motorcycle club. In the movie Johnny and his gang ride along the open highway, free as birds, they decided to stop in a quiet little town were their...
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...Brief History of "Outlaw" Motorcycle Clubs Little scholarly research exists which addresses outlaw motorcycle clubs. These works attempt to explore warring factions of outlaw clubs, provide club members’ perspectives about media portrayal, expose myths, and elucidate motorcycle club culture.*1 The literature reveals gaps which leave many unanswered questions: Where do outlaw motorcycle clubs come from? How did they start? How or why did they evolve into alleged international crime organizations? The few histories of outlaw motorcycle organizations date the origins of such clubs to around 1947 and tend to oversimplify the issues of why these clubs formed and who actually joined them. Histories such as these are built on foundations of weak evidence, rendering inconsequential the origins of the subculture and relegating members of early organizations to the marginal status of “malcontents on the edge of society, and other antisocial types who just wanted to raise hell” (Valentine 147). This article extends current research by reaching back nearly half a century before 1947 to link the dawn of motorcycle organizations with the present reality of outlaw motorcycle clubs. The overarching goal of the article is to offer a more comprehensive history, an evolutionary history that may allow for a better understanding of contemporary motorcycle subculture. What follows is a taxonomy of social and historical factors affecting group formation of motorcycle clubs according to the...
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...According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an estimated 7.1 million motorcycles were registered in the United States as of 2008. The vast majority of motorcycle riders are law-abiding citizens who enjoy motorcycles as a hobby or form of transportation. Some enthusiasts even belong to clubs or groups devoted to motorcyclists; for example, an estimated 230,000 riders belong to the American Motorcyclist Association, one of the largest motorcycle clubs in the United States. What I will be talking about today is a small portion of motorcycle clubs that function as gangs and engage in a variety of deviant behavior and criminal activities. Individual members of such clubs proudly call themselves “One Percenters,” a nick name that originated from a comment made by the American Motorcycle Association that “99% of bikers follow the law.”! ! In an article; Leathers and Rolexs: The Symbolism and Values of the Motorcycle Club by! James F. Quinn and Craig J. Forsyth wrote “It is difficult to distinguish a modern one percenter from other bikers unless the patch is present. Further, the core traits of one percenters and their clubs are merely the extreme of a continuum that runs from law-abiding to crime immersed and from the countercultural gang member to the sophisticated subcultural entrepreneur.”! ! There are 4 distinct types of offending that can be observed with these groups:! Spontaneous expressive acts, which are typically violent crimes that arise between...
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...murdered in his home in Inglewood, CA by the Folk Nation gang for trying being part of the rival gang, the Bloods. Now, the individual lives in south Inglewood, CA on the 104th street neighborhood with aunt to protect her after her son was killed. The individual has been friends with mostly African Americans for most of his life because he has been in predominantly more African American neighborhoods his entire life. Now that his history and family background have been explained in great detail it needs to be discussing his options of different gangs. To begin, it will need to be important to explain what the first type of gang is. The first type is Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMGs), which according to the Department of Justice (“Motorcycle Gangs,” n.d.), are organizations who their members use their motorcycle clubs as networks for their criminal enterprises. Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs or OMGs are highly organized criminal organizations whose members participate in criminal activities such as arms trafficking, drug trafficking, and violent acts of crime. The most famous gangs are The Hells Angels, Mongols, Outlaws, Bandidos, and Sons of Silence. There are more than 300 active Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMGs) within the United States, stretching in scope from lone chapters with small numbers of members more likely less than ten to hundreds of chapters with thousands of members internationally. With all the bad they do, it sometimes overshadows the good they do. For example, most chapters...
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...ORGANIZED CRIME INVESTIGATION "Yes, Mr. Hoover, there is a Mafia" (Rudy Giuliani) Organized crime is in a class by itself. It's big, it's powerful, it's well-connected, and highly profitable. Mafia is the most common term used to describe the more profitable criminal organizations around the world, but other terminology exists, such as: international criminal organizations (military usage); transnational crime (United Nations usage); and enterprise crime (FBI usage). As the term is utilized in criminology, it refers to any (or all) of six (6) different types of crime: (1) crime as business, which includes white collar crime as well as various forms of corruption; (2) offenses involving works of art, counterfeiting, or other cultural artifacts; (3) crime associated with the distribution and sale of narcotics as well as other contraband substances; (4) crime associated with human migration or sex trafficking including various forms of prostitution; and (5) crime involving contract murder or for-hire use of force, mostly deadly force; and (6) various forms of computer crime involving identity theft and/or other large-scale financial frauds. No one-sentence conceptual definition exists, and a very useful webpage can be found on the Internet devoted to the Many Definitions of Organized Crime. There are known characteristics of organized crime, such as corruption, violence, sophistication, continuity, structure, discipline, ideology (or lack thereof), multiple enterprises...
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...“Brands have become a ubiquitous phenomenon in our contemporary world. They are indispensable for companies and consumers alike. Critically discuss this contention” “Branding is at once one of the most artificial and yet most real forces in our society” * Kornberger 2010 This paper assesses and discusses the importance of brands in todays world. Focusing on the positive and negative affects brands can have through the initial relationship of a product to a name, to then more importantly its attached meaning and perception. It will also discuss the foundations of branding and how brands have become such a critical requirement for companies to be successful in todays fast moving technological age. Furthermore, it will discuss the notion that individuals are an all consuming machine in pursuit of expression and development through acts of consumption (Kornberger, 2010), known as self and social symbolism. It will discuss the contention of the benefits or detriments this social belief has in modern culture throughout all demographics. Lastly it will discuss the advantages and disadvantages the unescapable influence brands have on consumers, companies and society at large. Brands & Companies Initially, branding of goods began in ancient civilizations in order to determine what the product was and who it was created by as a practical order of business. However, in todays world there are a vast amount of products that can all achieve the same result and differ only...
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...Gangs The word “Gang” at one point in time was only used to describe a group of people, now days the word “Gang” is associated with negative groups who commit crime and violence. According to the FBI over 20,000 violent street gangs, motorcycle gangs and prisoner gangs currently exist throughout the United States, with over one million members (Federal Bureau of, 2009). Gangs are made up of all types and kinds of human beings from men, to woman, and even children. A good amount of the crime in several communities around the U.S. is victimized by the gang related activity. Gang activity is higher in cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, Arizona and New York, with more than half of all homicides thought to be gang related homicides (Muhlhausen, 2007). Overall organized crime is anywhere and everywhere; this is a very difficult area for law enforcement to keep control over, a non ending battle against something that will always gain new members. These new members join for many reasons and come from many backgrounds, mainly from distress and un-oriented families. The word “Gang” at one point in time was only used to describe a group of people, now days the word “Gang” is associated with negative groups who commit crime and violence. A street gang is “an association of individuals who have a gang name and recognizable symbols, a geographic territory, a regular meeting pattern, and an organized, continuous course of criminality” (Kenneth J. Peak, 2009). When you walk out of...
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...“Outside the Cage”: A Look at Harley-Davidson’s Culture Clinton M. Colley Shorter University LDSP 6220: Organizational Culture and Politics Dr. Craig Shull February 18, 2013 “Four wheels move the body, two wheels move the soul” is an anonymous quote that carries significant meaning to motorcycle riders. Often times motorcycle enthusiasts can be heard telling someone that drives a car or a truck to “get out of the cage.” There is a sense of freedom and independence when riding a motorcycle. For thousands upon thousands of people around the world one name comes to mind when talking about motorcycles. That name is Harley-Davidson (H-D). Even to the “non-rider” the name Harley-Davidson is often the first brand thought of when motorcycles are mentioned. Sometimes the thoughts might conjure a thought of open plains and the wind whipping through your hair. Other times the thoughts might be more sinister like the Hells Angels or other violent motorcycle gangs. One thing is certain; the Harley-Davidson “bar & shield” logo is one of the most known logos across the United States and possibly the world. Harley-Davidson has not always had the success and customer loyalty that they have today. The success that H-D has recently enjoyed can be strongly tied to its service-minded attitude and almost cult-like customer base. This paper will take a closer look at the culture of Harley-Davidson by looking at the norms, beliefs, and values of Harley-Davidson as a company, some...
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