I love being Black. I love the depth of my melanin; the versatility of my hair; the broadness of my nose, and the richness of my culture. Most importantly, I love that all my academic, professional, and personal achievements add to the oeuvre of Black history, coupling my recent Black experiences with those of my ancestors and Black icons of the past. Black History Month (BHM) is the shortest month of the year. Arguably, the most emotionally draining and mentally taxing month for Black folks. Not all of us, but a good portion of us. The exhaustion that is born of BHM is juxtaposed with a sense of empowerment that encourages us to take pride in all that we, a global community, have accomplished since well before the time of the Atlantic Slave trade. BHM is a time for us to be more unapologetically Black than usual. The beauty of BHM is that its meaning is unique to every Black person. For some, it means teaching our children about historical figures such as Marsha P. Johnson, Viola Desmond, Malcolm X, and Huey Newton. For others, BHM is a time to reiterate the horrors of slavery and segregation to our non-Black counterparts. Personally, BHM grants me the space to celebrate my family and our achievements (shout out to my cousin Elijah for his CFL contract). Time to honour my ancestors and their struggles and explore Black icons who are underrepresented in contemporary discourses of Black history. 

Kevin Hart attempted to increase awareness of lesser-known Black figures through his 2019 film Kevin Hart’s Guide to Black History. Although Hart certainly added to my repertoire of iconic Black folks, as a Black equestrian myself, I always felt that there was a gap in BHM conversations in which Black equestrians and cowboys were forgotten in favour for Black inventors and popular athletes. For much of my life, I have associated horses with white folks, having never seen anyone who looked like me or my Dad mounted upon a warmblood in my childhood. It did not occur to me until I watched Django Unchained (2012) that there was a history of Black folks on horses. 

When I connected with an online community, Equestrians of Colour, I soon realized that Tarantino’s n-word-addicted plot was not an accurate nor historically inspired depiction of Black cowboys in the mid-1800s. In fact, one of the most famous Black cowboys had not even been born during Django’s reign. But as Idris Elba’s character in Concrete Cowboy (2020) says “We all over...the history here is deep.” The history between Black folks and horses extends further than my being the first Black equestrian on the Trent team, and it is not limited to Black cowboys. However, there is one cowboy who deserves significant and continual praise. 

William M. Pickett, the son of a formerly enslaved man, was born in 1871 in Travis County, Texas. Due to the scarce archival material related to Black folks during this time, many of whom were previously enslaved, William’s childhood and family are generally undocumented which has led to some assumptions by biographers such as Bailey C. Hanes. Upon ending his formal education in the fifth grade, Pickett took up work as a ranch hand, an occupation common for young Black boys at the time. Hanes writes that Pickett was “fascinated” by the work of Texan cowboys, namely two of his cousins, and found the grit of their lifestyle attractive. Pickett took up an informal education in breaking horses and herding Texas longhorns. Having spent much of his time in and around cattle and horses, he had ample opportunity to explore roping and bronc riding with great promise and success. It was as if he had been born for the rodeo. Pickett exhibited his roping skills to locals and collected money by passing around his hat in true busker fashion. However, Pickett made a name for himself as a young black cowboy. His weekend roping routines and bronc riding served as the foundation for what would later become his claim to fame. 

In 1881 a young Pickett watched as catch and heel dogs cornered and captured a stray steer, holding it hostage until a cowboy could come and rope it. Inspired by the cowman’s dogs, Pickett crafted a technique that enabled man to wrestle a steer instead of a dog, and thus Pickett became the inventor of bulldogging, or modern-day steer wrestling. Named after the dogs that wrestled longhorns to the ground, bulldogging became a popular rodeo event in the 1900s. After demonstrating how a man could replace the catch dogs in the wrestling of calves during a branding session, Pickett decided to incorporate horses into bulldogging. From atop a cantering mount, Pickett would launch himself onto a fleeing steer and wrestle it to the ground. Yes, I know that this sounds absolutely horrendous. While I am not a massive fan of steer wrestling, the importance of the event lies in the fact that it led to the celebrity of Pickett Pickett as a rodeo star and, thus, a prominent Black cowboy and historical figure.

At the turn of the century, a previous employer and entrepreneur, Lee Moore, offered to manage Pickett. He began scheduling appearances at various rodeo events and fairs throughout Texas before expanding his roster to include out-of-state appearances. In the early 1900s, Pickett signed with the 101 Ranch Wild West rodeo and performed alongside names such as Buffalo Bill. Unfortunately, Pickett was often barred from performing at rodeos due to his race. To combat this ban, he repeatedly claimed Cherokee heritage. It was not uncommon for individuals to have mixed ancestries, such as Black and Indigenous.  Pickett performed across North America before retiring from the rodeo life in 1916, trading his spurs for work boots as he took up ranching again. In 1932, Pickett passed away following a horse kick to his head, and although the King of Steer Wrestling is no longer with us, his legacy remains within the rodeo community. In 1984, entertainment producer Lu Vasons (1934-2015), inspired by the lack of acknowledgement of Black cowboys during the late 1970s, founded the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo (BPIR). The all-Black rodeo was the first of its kind and has since amassed a cult following of Black cowboys and equestrians, all invested in preserving the history of Black rodeo riders while promoting Black rodeo presence. In 2022, over 100 contestants were competing in the rodeo; events included the illustrious steer wrestling, barrel racing, bronc riding, and calf roping, to name a few. Following Vason’s death in 2015, his wife Valeria Howard-Cunningham took hold of the reins (pun intended), resulting in the BPIR becoming the first Black female-owned and produced rodeo. 

Not only is the BPIR a profitable entrepreneurial venture and a cultural staple in the Black western world, it has expanded and become a charitable organization in America. The BPIR foundation seeks to support young Black rodeo riders in pursuing their rodeo, educational, and community goals through educational programs, scholarships, and bursaries for rodeo participants. I want to highlight the importance of fellowships designated to Black, racialized, and diverse equestrians. Any activity involving a horse is constitutionally expensive. Any horse owner can expect to pay upwards of $600 monthly in boarding fees, which do not include purchasing feed, supplements, or veterinarian and farrier care. Horses in regular work come with additional costs such as chiro and massage therapy– yes, horses can and do receive specialized spa treatments. An approximate monthly cost for caring for a horse can hover around the $2000 mark. I didn’t include the cost of training, trailering, showing, and tack in this estimate. In sum, equine sports are expensive as hell. Due to systemic racism and a racial hierarchy that works to prevent Black folks from entering the upper and middle classes, there is a substantial financial barrier faced by Black folks who aspire to ride. Pickett was fortunate enough to live in an area surrounded by horses and livestock, easing his entry into the western world. Scholarships are crucial in supporting young Black equestrians as they work towards their riding goals, whether they aspire to compete at the Royal Agricultural  Winter Fair or the Norwood Fair. 

I first came across the BPIR in 2022 when I joined the Equestrians of Colour Facebook group. 

Bill Pickett is more than a symbol of the rodeo. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that a Black man had played an integral role in shaping the rodeo world. I was even more amazed that a community of Black western riders had an entire event dedicated to him. Of course, Pickett wasn’t the only Black cowboy of his time. Other notable names are Nat Love, the antagonist in Jeymes Samuel’s The Harder They Fall (2021), and John Ware, one of southern Alberta's first and most successful ranchers. However, Pickett’s contribution to the horse world makes him arguably the most prominent Black cowboy. To me and other Black equestrians, he is an emblem of our rightful place in the horse world, whether we show in a shadbelly or ride in full chaps. He reminds us that our hard work, dedication and passion for horses can and will pay off. We, too, can make Black history in the horse world.