One Percenter Lexicon

The Outlaws Motorcycle Club, colloquially known as a biker club or bikie club (in Australia), is a motorcycle subculture generally focused on the use of cruiser motorcycles—particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers—and on a set of ideals aimed at celebrating freedom, nonconformity with mainstream culture, and loyalty to the biker group. This subculture originated in the United States in the late 1940s and has since spread worldwide.

In the United States, these motorcycle clubs (referred to by the abbreviation “MC”) are considered “outlaw” (rebellious, outcast, or independent)—not necessarily because they engage in criminal activity, but because they are not recognized by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) and do not follow its rules. Instead, they have their own bylaws, which reflect the specific culture of these biker groups.

Some of these clubs can be recognized by a patch bearing the inscription “1%” or shaped like a rhombus (a “diamond”), which members wear on their club colors (vests with an emblem). It is said to refer to a comment William Berry, former president of the American Motorcyclists Association (AMA), made in 1960: 99% of motorcyclists were law-abiding citizens, implying the remaining 1% were outlaws.