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Our Fashion Choices Today Would Have Been Extremely Questionable in History

Khalid Elhassan April 11, 2022 35 min

23. From Camaraderie to Outlawry

The US Army ordered more than 90,000 WLA Liberators during the war, along with spare parts that were the equivalent of many more. Different models were also produced for the US Navy and Marine Corps, and a WLA variant, known as the WLC, was made for the Canadian Army. When peace returned, the military began to sell surplus Harley-Davidsons dirt cheap, and they were snapped up by returning GIs. Some veterans formed innocent motorcycle clubs, that eventually morphed into not-so-innocent biker gangs.

As happens after most wars, some WWII veterans had trouble readjusting to civilian life. Some suffered from what we now know as PTSD, some wanted to recapture the war’s adventure and adrenaline rush, and some were just plain bored. Some formed motorcycle clubs, and rode together mostly in military surplus Harley-Davidsons. At first, it was just about camaraderie, but it eventually became a fashion and lifestyle statement. From there, it did not take long before some of the veterans’ motorcycle clubs gained a reputation as outlaws.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.