A Branded Few motorcycle club member was wearing a “bent cross” on his vest, not a swastika, according to Northern Nevada Confederation of Clubs representative Troy Regus. He made the statement while being questioned by Washoe Board of County Commissioners Chair Alexis Hill, who asked if members of the confederation were allowed to wear swastikas. 

The exchange kicked off a discussion on Tuesday to reconsider a $10,000 county donation to the Reno Toy Run, a nonprofit event hosted by the motorcycle group to benefit local children. The donation was initially approved by commissioners on June 18. But that approval was called into question immediately after the meeting when local reporter Ben Margiott of KRNV posted a photo of the swastika-emblazoned vest on X, formerly Twitter. 

Regus said he was against the swastika, which he agreed was antisemitic. He argued, however, that the symbol on the Branded Few’s vests was a bent cross composed of four letter Ls, which an online search revealed is meant to symbolize luck, light, love and life. The eagle atop the icon—which is similar to the Nazi War Eagle—he said is representative of strength.

“We do not tolerate any hate, any type of hate, of anybody whatsoever,” Regus said of the toy run and confederation. He added that the group polices itself and doesn’t allow wrong-doers to associate with the clubs.

The Anti-Defamation League, in a 2011 report, “Bigots on Bikes,” detailed the link between white supremacists and biker gangs. The organization noted: 

“When motorcycle clubs continue to display symbols like the swastika prominently, they have sometimes had to come up with rationalizations to convince others that they are not neo-Nazis. For example, The Branded Few, a 1%er motorcycle club based in Reno, Nevada, claims, somewhat unconvincingly, that the prominent swastika found in the center of their patch is merely a good luck symbol, ‘a combination of four ‘L’s’ standing for Luck, Light, Love and Life.’

“Such explanations do not explain why a Nazi-style war eagle grasps the swastika. Members of the Branded Few have asserted that they are not white supremacists, which may well be true, but they have nevertheless been reluctant to abandon the offensive symbols.”

Hill said both of her grandfathers served in World War II, one in Germany and one in the Pacific, against totalitarian regimes that used the swastika as a party symbol. To her, the emblem on the vest was a Nazi swastika that represented hate, racism, antisemitism, sexism and discrimination. 

Despite her feelings, she said she was willing to reconsider the donation based on community feedback and additional research on the meaning of the symbol for thousands of years before its appropriation by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party.

She asked Regus to answer yes or no on whether the confederation allowed members to wear swastikas. 

“I define it as not a swastika,” Regus responded.

“It’s clear to me,” Hill countered. “The swastika is a sign of white supremacy, totalitarianism, nazism, and I will not vote to give taxpayer dollars to an organization whose members can wear swastikas.” 

Commissioner Mike Clark indicated that the discussion about swastikas was irrelevant because his donation was not to a specific club but to the Reno Toy Run nonprofit, and none of that group’s board members wear swastikas or “bent crosses.”

“I agree with you. America fought Nazism, America crushed Nazism, and rightfully so,” he said. “My donation was to the Reno Toy Run to give toys to children that didn’t have resources,” adding that many kids wouldn’t have Christmas without the toy run.

Commissioner Mariluz Garcia agreed that the donation was all about helping kids. She added that she could not see a symbol such as a swastika associated with generosity and kindness under any circumstance. 

“If my son’s soccer coach showed up to practice wearing a swastika on his sweatshirt and he said, ‘Actually, this is a bent cross,’ I would ask to change teams,” she said. “In my family, swastikas symbolize hate, racism and violence.” 

She said she would respectfully listen to others’ perspectives and supported the right for people to wear whatever they want. “However, I will never condone normalizing the use of swastikas in any context. I’m using this as my right to take my name and my vote off of this donation.”

Clark also referenced a recent decision to uphold a contract funding the Karma Box Project, whose founder and executive director, Grant Denton, was investigated by the county for alleged sexual misconduct. 

“It was pointed out that the money that the county was giving to Karma Box was not to the individual, so the exact same rules should apply here,” Clark said. “The person sitting in the audience has nothing to do with voting, spending, using anything to do with the Reno Toy Run’s management … this organization stands on its own.” 

Clark added that his donation was intended to support children and that he abhors anything to do with Nazism. He waved a small flag of Israel and noted the $2,500 donation he made to Jewish Nevada at the same meeting. 

“How could you even think I would support a Nazi organization [at] the same time I was supporting Jewish Nevada?” he asked. 

Public commenters supported donation

During public comment, many people spoke in support of the donation. Several called out what they saw as hypocrisy for allowing an invocation from Reno Satanic but refusing to approve a donation for a charity toy run. 

Attorney Hawah Ahmad said she consulted with Commissioner Clark on some of his donations but did not recommend the Reno Toy Drive. She said, however, that she didn’t support rescinding the donation based on one club’s use of symbolism.

She referenced controversies over Drag Queen Story Hour and National Rifle Association meetings at local libraries, both permitted. 

“Historically, those are allowed because, under the First Amendment, you can’t distinguish between something you agree with and something you don’t agree with … In your personal life, that’s totally OK. However, in the role of a government official, there’s a fine line.”

Commissioner Clara Andriola said she would support the donation because it met the policy requirements for county donations. 

“The reality is, we’re not here, in my opinion, to judge,” she said. “We’re here to actually follow the policy that’s in place, and they’ve met all that policy.”

Commissioners Clark, Herman and Andriola voted to uphold the $10,000 donation, while Commissioners Hill and Garcia opposed it.