The Hells Angels are an international outlaw motorcycle club that began in California in the late 1940s and has since become one of the most infamous biker organizations in the world, often linked by authorities to organized crime while presenting itself as a brotherhood of motorcycle enthusiasts. Their public image sits at the intersection of counterculture myth, criminal allegations, and tightly controlled club tradition.

Quick Scoop

Origins and name

  • The Hells Angels trace their roots to post–World War II California, with early chapters forming around Fontana and San Bernardino in 1948 as small motorcycle clubs of largely ex‑servicemen merged. This era of cheap surplus motorcycles and restless veterans set the stage for a tougher, rebellious biker culture.
  • The name is widely reported as inspired by World War I and II military aviation units called “Hell’s Angels,” as well as a 1930 Howard Hughes film of the same title, though different accounts exist inside and outside the club. The club itself deliberately omits the apostrophe and even jokes that outsiders are the ones “missing it.”

What kind of group it is

  • Formally, the Hells Angels describe themselves as a motorcycle club whose members typically ride Harley‑Davidsons, with a focus on loyalty, brotherhood, and the biker lifestyle. Membership is tightly controlled and involves stages such as being a “hang‑around,” “prospect,” and finally a full “patched” member.
  • Law‑enforcement and intelligence agencies in countries such as the United States, Canada, and across Europe often classify the Hells Angels as an organized crime group, citing repeated cases of members involved in drug trafficking, extortion, weapons offenses, and violent clashes with rivals. The club publicly rejects the label and argues that crimes are the responsibility of individuals, not its core philosophy.

Symbols, culture and rules

  • The group is famous for its “death’s‑head” skull logo, red‑and‑white colors, and the “81” code (8 = H, 1 = A) used on support gear. Members wear “colors” (their leather or denim vests and patches) that signal their chapter, rank, and allegiance to the club.
  • Strict internal rules emphasize secrecy, loyalty, and non‑cooperation with authorities, with a clear hierarchy including chapter presidents and officers. Leaving the club or betraying it can carry severe informal consequences, and members are expected to present a united front in public.

Global spread and conflicts

  • From its California origins, the club expanded rapidly across the U.S. in the 1950s and 1960s and then into other continents, with hundreds of chapters now reported in dozens of countries. This growth coincided with the broader 1960s counterculture, which helped cement its outsider, anti‑establishment mystique.
  • Expansion has also brought violent turf wars with rival biker clubs and internal feuds, including high‑profile conflicts over drug markets in places like Quebec, which led to bombings, shootings, and many deaths and arrests. These episodes heavily shaped the public narrative of the Hells Angels as a dangerous “one‑percenter” outlaw gang.

How people talk about them today

  • Public discussion around “who are the Hells Angels” usually splits into several viewpoints: fans who romanticize them as hard‑riding rebels, critics who see them as a violent crime syndicate, and more neutral observers who point to a mix of social club, outlaw culture, and criminal opportunity. Online forums sometimes include self‑identified or claimed members who insist the media exaggerates, while others share local stories of intimidation or charity rides, showing a complicated, region‑dependent reality.
  • In recent years, coverage often focuses on police crackdowns, international expansion, and the tension between their carefully managed brand (merchandise, official sites, charity events) and serious criminal cases tied to individual members or chapters.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.