WILD
Where in your memory lies the history of Black cowboys and cowgirls? Does it stay trapped in your imagination? Some distant memory from that one class lesson? The truth of the matter is that any discussion about the Wild West must include Black cowboys and girls. Research from the Smithsonian Institution estimates that one in four cowboys were Black during the 19th century. And fundamental U.S. history confirms Black women’s role in shaping the American West, from leading cowgirl of the Texas Coastal Bend Henrietta Williams Foster to wild horse tamer Johana July.
Erasure has always been and will always be one of the great struggles of marginalized communities. All people of color are often overlooked when discussing the original cowboys. The only time non-white people are mentioned within American West discourse regards the genocidal abuse of Native peoples at the hands of colonizers and dehumanizing stereotypes. Therefore, there are minimal, adequate representations of people of color in cowboy culture that ever permeate mainstream consciousness. However, most cowboys and horse ranchers come from diverse backgrounds. The multicultural makeup of the American West should be more evident in the narrative and portrayal of early cowboys in contemporary media.
Enslaved Black men were tasked with managing lands during the Civil War, prompting them to acquire the abilities of a skilled cowboy. After the Civil War, being a cowboy was one of the few jobs available for feed Black men. The contributions of Black cowboys did not align with the commercialization and general romanticism of the American west by the white mainstream population. As a result, in a nefarious omission of truth, history books, films, and music removed the Black imprint from the West.
The idea of Black cowboys and girls existing seems inconceivable to most people; we tend to associate cowboys with themes of liberation and freedom, and we all know Black men and women were anything but free in the 19th century. The existence of Black cowboys and girls contradicts the trauma and oppression we associate with that period in history. Therefore, they are left out of the imaginary Wild West that mainstream society aims to create. This manufactured Wild West favors the idea of white men “running wild” through the frontier with no rules. However, Black people not only existed within this Western sphere, but chartered their own path and made history.
It was a Black ranch hand, Bill Pickett, who revolutionized a way to wrestle steers with his own hands, which led to his induction in the Rodeo Hall of Fame and the establishment of his “bulldogging” maneuver. Pickett’s contributions and more are featured in the 2021 Netflix film, The Harder They Fall, which shows Black, Western identity in the limelight without reproach. Visual media is one way in which Black folk are reclaiming our Wild West identity.
As with a lot of areas concerning the Black community, when we are not included in the space, we create our own room for community and showmanship. Organizations like the Black Professional Cowboys and Cowgirls Association foster spaces for Black people to improve their riding skills and more.
Music has also incited a resurgence of Black western identity; take songs like ‘Old Town Road’ that shatter the stereotype that Black people “don’t belong” in country/western spaces. ‘Old Town Road’ is the highest-certified song ever by the RIAA as of September 2021. The song was quite literally a cultural reset. Black people are not “invading” these spaces. We were fundamental in creating the West and still actively contribute to cowboy culture. Black cowboys and girls are here, they are proud, and they are not trapped in the imaginary.