A picture of Hells Angels ringing bells to raise money for the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle drive taken on Black Friday outside of the Valparaiso Walmart went viral on social media after an “Aryan” patch was spotted on the leather jacket and hat of one of the bell ringers.
The post, since take down, struck a nerve with the community and all of the parties involved, as the Salvation Army of Porter County has apologized and banned the Hells Angels from volunteering again. The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club NWI, through a spokesman, has gone on the defensive about the club’s charitable efforts and noted that members of different ethnicities sometimes wear “heritage based patches.”
“It is hard to imagine any context in which a white person wearing a patch with the word ‘Aryan’ on it would communicate anything other than hostility to persons of other races,” said Heath Carter, chair of the Valparaiso Human Relations Council and a history professor at Valparaiso University. “I applaud the Salvation Army for revoking the bell-ringing privileges of anyone who would insist on wearing such a patch.”
The Hells Angels’ Facebook page, which included pictures of its bell ringers and proclaimed they collected “six buckets fulla cash” for the non-profit, also has been removed reportedly, according to the spokesman, because of complaints about the page. He said a total amount for how much the Hells Angels raised would not be available for several weeks.
“Those in need don’t care about personal political agendas or what’s deemed to be morally correct for the changing times. They care about eating a hot meal, a roof over their head. They care about the donations, and that’s it,” the spokesman said in a text message, adding the Salvation Army doesn’t have enough volunteers.
This was the second year the club’s members volunteered as bell ringers. They did so last year on Black Friday and on the Saturday before Christmas, the spokesman said. A second date for bell ringing this year was canceled after the incident at Walmart.
Noting that Hells Angels is a worldwide, “multinational, multiracial motorcycle club” that accepts motorcyclists from all walks of life, the spokesman added that includes “Latinos that wear ‘LATINO’ patches, Japanese that wear ‘BUSHIDO’ patches, and yes, Whites that wear ‘ARYAN’ patches.”
“Most members wear nothing in the way of heritage-based patches,” he said adding that’s not what the clubs are about. “Like all Americans, we love exercising our freedom. Sometimes freedom means you see and hear things you may not like. We accept that.”
As soon as the matter was brought to the attention of Walmart officials, they asked the Hells Angels at the Valparaiso store, at 2400 Morthland Drive, to leave, a corporate spokeswoman said via email.
“We made the Salvation Army aware and they apologized. The Salvation Army is responsible for screening its volunteers stationed outside our stores. We’ve had a long history of supporting the Salvation Army and regret this isolated incident,” she said, directing further questions to the Salvation Army.
The Salvation Army relies heavily on volunteers to ring bells during its annual Red Kettle Drive and welcomes, and is grateful for, every volunteer who wants to help the community, Lt. Christopher Nicolai, corps officer for the Salvation Army of Porter County, said in a prepared statement.
The agency’s commitment to non-discrimination includes a dress code for bell ringers, requiring that they wear red Salvation Army aprons and making clear that no “symbol, marking or lettering that is viewed as discrimination” may be worn.
“Clearly, the bell ringers in question did not comply with this dress code,” Nicolai said. “They will not be allowed to volunteer in the future. We are embarrassed that we were unable to prevent this incident, and apologize to all who were offended, as were we.”
Nicolai went on to say that it was it was impossible to overstate the fact that the views of the bell ringers do not, in any way, reflect those of the Salvation Army or its retail partners who assist to help local people in need.
“We assure you that we will work diligently to make certain that nothing like this happens again,” he said.
This is not the first time the Hells Angels have run afoul of the community when purporting to raise funds for a charitable cause.
In May 2016, when they found out a Burns Harbor bar was hosting a bike night to raise money for SELF School, a Valparaiso facility that provides educational services to children with disabilities, and for kids with cancer who are home-schooled, they wanted to help out.
A flier for the bike night caught the eye of the Porter County Sheriff’s Department, which organized a saturation patrol for six hours that day that involved 60 officers from 10 local and state police agencies.
Citing a report from the Department of Justice, Sheriff David Reynolds said then that Hells Angels were a syndicated crime organization whose members use their motorcycle clubs as “conduits for criminal enterprises.”
Police said later that the saturation patrol netted a few arrests and numerous traffic stops.
Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.