MC

Texas Bikers Stop VFW’s No MC Colors Policy

from https://www.motorcycleprofilingproject.com/ The National Council of Clubs, representing the interests of motorcycle clubs and thousands of their members in every state in America, is both concerned and appalled at recent reports of Veterans organizations, including some VFW, American Legion, and Eagles posts, among others, denying access to individuals expressing membership in motorcycle clubs. So what’s the solution? The Texas Council of Clubs & Independents recent campaign in response to a policy of discrimination announced by the state VFW serves as an example of a successful strategy for others facing similar acts of discrimination by private Veterans organizations in their states. Texas VFW General Orders of discrimination Dated October 2019, the Department of Texas VFW sent General Orders to all VFW Posts throughout the state outlining a new written policy which includes a provision excluding all 1% MC members, employing gang labeling, from VFW events and property. The TCOC&I quickly became aware of the General Orders through local VFW posts in numerous areas of the state and immediately began a campaign responding to the new policy of discrimination. Motorcycle clubs have a long history of having events at VFW posts, many motorcyclists are members, and relationships are strong in many places in Texas, as they are throughout America. TCOC&I uses social media to apply pressure Representatives of the TCOC&I began spreading the VFW letter through social media channels. Thousands in Texas and across the country became aware. On October 9th, a direct response from the TCOC&I in the form of a formal letter was sent to the Texas VFW outlining the community’s request that the policy be reversed. The TCOC&I emphasized the historical ties between the MC community and VFW’s throughout Texas. 38% of the club community are Veterans, more than five times the national average. MC meetings, benefits, and social […]

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Motorcycle Clubs and the One Percenter

It’s no secret that Americans love outlaws, from the legends and lore of rebellious (and illegal) acts by the Founding Fathers, to the bushwhacking and bank-robbing capers of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, to the “bad boy” music of Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones and Dr. Dre. American culture and mass media have led inexorably to characters that embody this bad-boy attitude – a recent example being Jax, the heartthrob outlaw biker star of the TV show “Sons of Anarchy”. Western society has a long established canon from which we “learn” about society from fictional dramas. And the more we watch shows like “Sons of Anarchy,” the more a news story will seem to fit our mental construct of “how those people are.” The same is true of popular TV crime dramas’ portrayal of American minorities’ involvement in violent crime. And it seems that every time outlaw motorcycle clubs are portrayed in the news, it’s because of something terrible, such as the deadly events in Waco, Texas. Add to this the fact that the outlaw biker narrative has been largely controlled over time, not by members of the culture, but by outsiders and the misconceptions grow. The term 1%er was first used in print in the pages of Life Magazine during the 1960’s. The article was a contrived response to an AMA rally in Hollister CA, after encouraging certain individuals to get drunk and ride through town the media then reported on ‘drunken’ motorcycle clubs giving rise to the popular misconception of bikers and also the movie The Wild One. The American Motorcycle Association stated that 99% of the people at their events were God fearing and family oriented. The other 1% were hard riding, hard partying, non mainstream type people. Thus the term 1%er found its place in

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Thousands of Outlaws attend Dayton funeral for Taco Bowman

Illinois, Texas, New York, North Carolina, Wisconsin and Connecticut were among the dozens of states represented Saturday at the funeral of the infamous former international president of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club – known to all as Harry Joseph “Taco” Bowman, at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. Police estimate there were more than 2,000 people at the funeral Saturday morning, coming in from all over the world on 1,200 motorcycles and hundreds of other vehicles. Mark Lovett, a detective in the Columbus Police division’s intelligence unit said he saw patches from England as Outlaws drove in, and the crowd was large because many drove up Interstate 75 from Daytona Beach Bike Week, which is running from March 8 through today. Lovett has been to more than 15 Outlaws motorcycle funerals in the last 20 years and this is by far the largest one he has witnessed. Even larger than the funeral for Dayton’s Harold “Stairway Harry” Henderson, Bowman’s mentor and one of the last International presidents of the Outlaws, Lovett said. “This is one of those events that really only happen once in our career, to see something this big,” Lovett said. Several police agencies and task forces were at the funeral outside of uniform to observe. Most of the funerals are peaceful, Lovett said. But uniformed police and fire departments were ready to respond to any needs, including general health concerns of members attending the services. “You just never know what’s going to happen at a motorcycle gang funeral. They say they’re not a gang, but they fit the description,” he said. Members of the Outlaws would not comment to the Daily News Reporters, but they said Bowman is a legacy. Bowman died March 3 at age 69. He was serving two life sentences in a North Carolina prison after being

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Outlaws Motorcycle Club leader’s funeral set for Montgomery Co. fairgrounds

‘Taco’ Bowman was president of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club. DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) – Harry Joseph “Taco” Bowman, the former president of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club who was on the FBI’s top ten most wanted fugitive’s list, will have his funeral on Saturday at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. Bowman’s funeral is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. A procession from the fairgrounds to Bear Creek Cemetery on North Union Road in Madison Twp. will begin at 12 p.m. Sheriff’s Deputies will be shutting down North Union Road to Hoover Avenue in Trotwood for the funeral. Additionally, deputies will also partially close down Infirmary Road from the Montgomery County fairgrounds to SR-35 for the procession. Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck said officers are not expecting any safety issues but given the size of the crowd and the reputation of the group, they do have contingency plans in place. “There’s always concerns when you have get large groups of people who have been known to be violent. They do not try to hide that fact,” Streck said. “(But) We don’t have any chatter of suspected violence, we don’t have any indications that other clubs are going to try and cause trouble at the event.” Bowman, who was serviving a life sentence in federal prison, died on Sunday at the Federal Medical Center in North Carolina. He was 69 years old. According to the Detroit News, Bowman was considered one of the most infamous motorcycle gang leaders in U.S. history. The Outlaws were rivals to the Hell’s Angels. Bowman was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted List in 1998, interrupting what had been a relatively low profile kept by Bowman while serving as leader of the Outlaws. In 2001, he was convicted in a Federal court in Florida of the murders of several rival gang members,

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Texas Man Charged with Unlawful Carry Solely for Being a Bandido

The MPP has heavily reported on the recent trend of individuals being arrested for possession of handguns merely for membership in a motorcycle club. This includes individuals with no criminal records and License To Carry holder’s. The MPP has even issued a travel warning to motorcyclists traveling through Texas. One such case against a member of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club (Ashley Becker) in Lubbock, TX continues with a refiling of charges for Unlawful Carry for mere membership in the club, which authorities label a criminal street gang. Law enforcement and prosecutors should dismiss all such cases in the name of justice because they rely on an unconstitutional application of statute which ignores the basic principle of personal guilt. Texas Penal Code 46.02, the statute prohibiting gang members from carrying weapons, is being misapplied to individuals simply for being members of motorcycle clubs. Take Ashley Becker, who was originally charged with Unlawful Carry and suspicion of possessing a controlled substance in Lubbock, Texas in 2018. The weapon wasn’t illegal, and no crime was committed. He was arrested under 46.02 for being a Bandido in possession of an otherwise legal weapon. The alleged controlled substance, after being tested multiple times, turned out to be inconclusive. While prosecutors make no admission that they misapplied statute 46.02, they filed a motion to dismiss. The motion reads, “The interest of justice cannot be served through further proceedings in this matter.” Although the 2018 indictment was dismissed without prejudice, on February 9, 2019 charges were refilled against Becker on the Unlawful Carry charges. The affidavit identifies Becker’s membership in the Bandidos as the only probable cause for arrest. Authorities persist despite absurd, unconstitutional interpretation of law. Despite the fact that their interpretation of statute is unconstitutional and in violation of established state and federal rules of

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The Art & Craft of Extreme Book Collecting

A ready 101 inspecting the Hells Angels Book For quite a few years I have collected Author Signed Hardcover First Editions of various English language novels from many popular authors. They are mostly affordable especially if you meet the authors at book signings of their new releases or at various Literary Festivals, Cultural Events, etc. Anyways, this week I received the Hardcover First Edition of : Hell’s Angel : The Life and Times of Sonny Barger and the Hell’s Angels Motorcycle Club Hardcover – July 2000 by Sonny Barger (Author), Keith Zimmerman (Author), Kent Zimmerman (Author) Now, even though the ISBN is the same, 1. the Publisher is different 2. the Date of publication is different 3. the number of pages is different So, here is what I found BEFORE buying the UK First Edition Hardcover READ THE DETAILED SCRUTINY AT CANTINA ARTICLE – CLICK HERE www.Bikernet.com  

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