MC (motorcycle club) member here to shed a little light on the common subject of this being HA (hells angels) as well as that club in particular. First off I am not HA and hold no affiliations with with any "1%" (outlaw) club. In fact the term 1% has been misconstrued to represent an outlaw when what it can also stand for is the persons dedication to motorcycles and their club at a level that only they can understand.

At these funerals, what you are seeing is a nationwide organization of motorcyclists called the patriotguard. These people show the respect that people deserve and have earned as well as stand up for those who have their honor threatened. In the case of these funerals and those of veterans, they form their line. They have a way of dealing with WbC that does not involve violence (bikers are smarter than you think). If WBC does show up, they are herded a safe distance away and if they chant or try to speak out, the patriot guard drowns out their noise by any means necessary so the families of the victims don't hear it (reving engines). The riders also escort the procession on many occasion. It really is an amazing thing to see. I don't see any identification on any of those in the photos that would indicate any of those people are affiliated with a club but are out there doing what they can to honor the victims.

Next on the agenda is the reputation of the Hells Angels. The reputation of these men and other clubs that are registered as a crime syndicate or an outlaw gang by our government does not make any of the clubs out there to be a being scum of society. The clubs have earned those titles from mistakes that members before chose to make, from other members that currently choose criminal lifestyle, but not the club making them chose that direction. So WEZZER, definitely ran into some trouble with some HA members that chose their path. That situation has its own story that paints the club as no good. But an important lesson to learn is that, now, bikers as a whole can be some of the nicest people you will meet and when you give respect, you will more than likely get it back (I speak from my experience in the state of AZ). Lack of respect will definitely get a response that you won't want. Not all bikers are saints, some guys get into the culture because they want to be tough bad asses. Some have different reasons. For myself, because I love to ride motorcycles, I love the characters I meet, the friends I've made and the brotherhood we've formed, the people we help through our charity, and being a part of something bigger and more important than myself are a few general reasons that I enjoy being in my club. The MC culture is amazing and has many branches that would be a challenge to define. Currently many stories and attempts to identify and label the cultures runs into the problem of hearsay. So if my words made sense up until now I'll leave you with this. The motorcycle club and their colors is only the surface of the person you see and what stereotype or preconceived notion of what kind of person is on you. Try to imagine all the good things those people do for our world, educate yourself on that. Look at this picture and see people showing respect for the innocent lives recently lost not criminals. You can see what my club stands for here mind the clutter, it's under construction and we are trying to get it ready for a fund raiser