The Filipino family says the license plate is a nod to the family’s grandfather which translates to lolo in Tagalog. As seen on air on the NBC4 News at 11 p.m. on Dec. 14, 2024.
A family in Los Angeles says they're feeling misunderstood after facing scrutiny over a custom license plate that was supposed to be an endearing nod to their grandfather.
The license plate which reads LOLOCT7, is divided into three parts: "LOLO" in Tagalog means grandfather, "CT" for Cyber Truck and "7" references the number of grandchildren.
According to a family member who chose to remain anonymous, the DMV did not contact the family before issuing a public apology.
The family says they were horrified by the events and intend to go into the DMV on Monday to exchange the license plate.
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The family member says that they wish the person who took the photo would have approached them before putting it online. They added that the family has a lot of empathy for the people who were offended by the misunderstood message, especially with all the "prejudice in the world."
"We're a large Filipino family and this had nothing to do with the conflict in the Middle East," said the family member.
The Cyber truck was spotted near Culver City and originally believed to be an antisemitic message, referring to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
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The California DMV issued a public apology Friday after receiving complaints from organizations and Jewish leaders regarding the custom license plate.
The DMV said in a social media post that “This is unacceptable and disturbing,” and that they are “taking 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.”
It added in a statement on Monday it would recall the license plate.
"We understand that language and symbols can hold different meanings across cultures and communities. What may be a term of endearment in one context can be perceived differently in another," the department said in a statement.
"To prevent similar situations in the future, the DMV is reviewing and strengthening its internal processes for evaluating personalized license plate applications."
Editors note: An earlier version of this article referenced that the license plate appeared to be antisemitic. The owners of the Cyber Truck have since come forward and stated that the message was not referencing the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
