Bikers Against Child Abuse: PART I
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B.A.C.A., Bikers Against Child Abuse “…exists with the intent to create a safer environment for abused children.” It is NOT a biker’s Club, and it is not a 1 per-center (outlaw) club. It is a non-profit organization of Bikers, men and women, who enjoy motorcycle riding and wear the regalia that people associate with motorcycle riders. And they all share and come together as a Unit because of their love of children – “We exist as a body of bikers to empower children to not feel afraid of the world in which they live. We stand ready to lend support to our wounded friends by involving them with an established, united organization.” These are direct quotes from B.A.C.A.’s Mission Statement.
B.A.C.A. is now in Ventura County, California and meets the last Saturday of each month at 10:00 AM, at Mimi’s Café in Ventura. The public is invited.
It was created in 1995 by John P. Lilly, a licensed Social Worker who to this day continues to work as a Child Play Therapist in Utah, where he founded B.A.C.A. He has lectured at Brigham Young University, has ties to Utah Valley University (32,000 enrollment) in Orem, and is a personal friend of the Utah State Attorney General, Sean Reyes. During the George W. Bush administration he was invited to the White House. He told Laura Bush that he did not own a suit and asked if he could wear his every day clothes of a biker. She assured him he could wear whatever he wanted. And so he did. That is Chief, a charismatic but simple man.
Through his work he encountered many abused children in need of therapy. “Chief”, which is his “Road Name” is Native American and also came from an abusive background. He became a biker after having been taken under the protective wings of a Biker club. He never forgot the security and camaraderie that he felt and that gave him the confidence and work ethic to succeed scholastically. His experience led him to form his friends and himself into an organization, which through the use of motorcycles began to empower children, and thus, Bikers Against Child Abuse was born. Twenty years later B.A.C.A. is either in every State, or forming a new Chapter therein. Where three years ago it had chapters in 6 foreign countries it is now forming in over 30 other countries.
“We work in conjunction with local and state officials who are already in place to protect children. We desire to send a clear message to all involved with the abused child that this child is part of our organization, and that we are prepared to lend our physical and emotional support to them by affiliation and our physical presence. We stand at the ready to shield these children from further abuse.”
Each child is made a part of the B.A.C.A. family at what is called a Level One meeting where the child(ren) are introduced to members of their local organization and, quite often, members from other chapters. In Texas, that could mean from 60 to 100 motorcycles and riders.
But more on Bikers Against Child Abuse in Part II.
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Leo Alvarez is retired from Oxnard PD and is President of the Children’s Wall of Tears™ www.thecwot.org
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B.A.C.A. actually talks the talk and walks the walk, something other organizations do not do. Their entire mission is to make the child feel safe in the world in which they live – They are not paid for the work they do. They donate their time. I am very grateful to work with B.A.C.A.