LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥 The California Department of Motor Vehicles has apologized for an 鈥渦nacceptable and disturbing鈥 personalized truck license plate that the agency said displayed hate speech related to the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. But a relative of the vehicle's owner said the whole controversy was an unfortunate misunderstanding.
by the watchdog group StopAntisemitism showed a license plate on a Tesla Cybertruck near Los Angeles that read 鈥淟OLOCT7.鈥 LOL is an abbreviation for 鈥渓augh out loud.鈥
The group said the plate seemed to reference Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked Israel, killing hundreds of people and prompting an Israeli retaliation against Palestinians in Gaza.
But the son of the truck's owner told in Los Angeles that the personalized plate was not a reference to the Oct. 7 attack at all. He said it referred to the owner, who is a Filipino grandfather. 鈥淟OLO鈥 means grandfather in Tagalog, 鈥淐T鈥 refers to the Cybertruck, while 7 represents the owner鈥檚 seven children, according to the news station.
The DMV issued a statement Thursday, saying the department is 鈥渢aking swift action to recall these shocking plates, and we will immediately strengthen our internal review process to ensure such an egregious oversight never happens again.鈥
A spokesperson for the DMV told the the license plate should not have passed the review process and, after it was flagged on social media, many people who alerted the department found it offensive.
鈥淭he use of hateful language is not only a clear violation of our policies but also a violation of our core values to proudly serve the public and ensure safe and welcoming roadways,鈥 the DMV statement said.
The DMV said the license plate owner will be notified about the recall of their license plate because of the language. The owner of the vehicle has the right to appeal the department鈥檚 decision.
