Wire report
‘We’re in a brotherhood now’: the Bill Pickett rodeo – photo essay
For several years, Chloe Kerleroux has been photographing African American cowboy communities in the southern US. Her work has mainly focused on trail rides: large gatherings where horses, music, dancing, family and community life come together. This year, she explored rodeo culture including at the Bill Pickett invitational in Atlanta The image of the cowboy widely portrayed in westerns and popular culture has long been almost exclusively white. Yet Black cowboys hold an important place in the history of the American west. After the civil war and the abolition of slavery, many African Americans found work on ranches and on the great cattle drives westward. By the late 19th century, historians estimate about one in four cowboys were Black. Among the Black figures who shaped this history was Bill Pickett . Born in Texas in 1870, he became one of the most celebrated Black cowboys and rodeo
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For several years, Chloe Kerleroux has been photographing African American cowboy communities in the southern US. Her work has mainly focused on trail rides: large gatherings where horses, music, dancing, family and community life come together. This year, she explored rodeo culture including at the Bill Pickett invitational in Atlanta The image of the cowboy widely portrayed in westerns and popular culture has long been almost exclusively white. Yet Black cowboys hold an important place in the history of the American west. After the civil war and the abolition of slavery, many African Americans found work on ranches and on the great cattle drives westward. By the late 19th century, historians estimate about one in four cowboys were Black. Among the Black figures who shaped this history was Bill Pickett . Born in Texas in 1870, he became one of the most celebrated Black cowboys and rodeo
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According to The Guardian’s source item, ‘We’re in a brotherhood now’: the Bill Pickett rodeo – photo essay, For several years, Chloe Kerleroux has been photographing African American cowboy communities in the southern US. Her work has mainly focused on trail rides: large gatherings where horses, music, dancing, family and community life come together. This year, she explored rodeo culture including at the Bill Pickett invitational in Atlanta The image of the cowboy widely portrayed in westerns and popular culture has long been almost exclusively white. Yet Black cowboys hold an important place in the history of the American west. After the civil war and the abolition of slavery, many African Americans found work on ranches and on the great cattle drives westward. By the late 19th century, historians estimate about one in four cowboys were Black. Among the Black figures who shaped this history was Bill Pickett . Born in Texas in 1870, he became one of the most celebrated Black cowboys and rodeo
Context
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Primary source: ‘We’re in a brotherhood now’: the Bill Pickett rodeo – photo essay via The Guardian. VINI cites and links the source; it does not reproduce the publisher’s full article text without rights clearance.
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- ‘We’re in a brotherhood now’: the Bill Pickett rodeo – photo essayThe Guardian - 2026-10-12T06:00:47+00:00
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