LONDON, ENGLAND–Oxford English Dictionary, published by Oxford University Press, has edited its definition of bikers as “long-haired in dirty denims” after an outpouring of complaints from Britain’s two-wheeled community.
The former definition of “biker,” according to Oxford’s online dictionary, reads: “A motorcyclist, especially one who is a member of a gang: a long-haired biker in dirty denims.” After the revision, the definition now simply reads: “A motorcyclist, especially one who is a member of a gang or group.” (So instead of long-haired, dirty gang members, now bikers can be thought of as clean-cut gang members. Maybe the word “gang” in their definition of biker should be revisited, as well?)
According to a study performed by Britain-based Bennetts Bike Insurance, 21 percent of motorcyclists were “outraged and offended” by the former definition. The study also showed that close to 65 percent of motorcyclists (in the U.K.) spend the majority of their time riding alone, and not “as a member of a gang.” The study, which included a poll of 524 motorcyclists in the U.K., also found that 60 percent believed the definition to be “old and outdated.”
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