The Oakland Black Cowboy Association celebrated 50 years this weekend as hundreds of Black Oaklanders flocked to De Fremery Park to enjoy music, good food, a shared love of horses and to celebrate and honor the contribution of Black cowboys to the history and settling of the American West.
OBCA President Wilbert McAlister said what he likes most about the parade is seeing the community come together.
“The smiles on children’s faces, the smiles on young adults when they see the child happy and in a safe environment. The smiles on grandma … and grandpa, when they see the grandchildren having clean, safe, fun and they’re not worried and nervous and scared,” said McAlister, a grandparent himself.
“We have a lot of people out here and we have the same clean pride. And since I’ve been a president, we just try to keep it going on. And today, it’s a beautiful day,” he added.
Attendees reflected on the sense of community they’ve worked to preserve over the years, and shared their hopes that future generations will keep the scene alive.
Melanie Jackson comes from a family of horse enthusiasts and is introducing her 3-year-old daughter to riding as well.
“Being able to learn things from both my parents, my mom and my dad have been riding for years and years, and then them passing on that passion to me and being able to just pass that along to my daughter, who’s just a toddler has been great,” said Jackson.
Samuel Styles is an avid horse rider who works with the Oakland Black Cowboy Association, and traces his lifelong passion back to a moment over three decades ago.
“First time I saw black people on horses was at the Oakland Black Cowboy Parade when I was 5 years old. I’m 38 now,” said Styles.
Styles said that while the parade has become shorter over the years, the celebration has been drawing more people at each parade, with music and horse rides serving as part of the attraction.
“I usually have my family … we’ll come out and we’ll barbecue and be cowboys … just partying, playing music, having a good time, chilling as people kind of disperse amongst the day,” he said.
Carolyn Jackson calls herself “an avid horseman” who has been at it for over 40 years. She has her own association of Black riders too, but comes out to the OBCA parade to show support and celebrate a shared passion together.
“I am just so glad to see so many Black horsemen,” said Jackson. “I thought that after COVID and the recession, a lot of people got out of it. So I’m very happy to see especially younger people still trying to keep it alive. I love to see it.”
In a hopeful sign that the parade will live on, kids lined up by the dozens to get a short ride.
Mia Marshall explains how she started out just coming out to enjoy the parade, and after riding the same horse three parades in a row, she ended up becoming a Black cowgirl herself. She loves letting others ride the horses.
“We love doing the parades. We set up shop and let people ride [the horses],” says Marshall. “We’ve gone to elderly facilities because horses are very therapeutic for the elderly, for people with dementia, old timers and so forth. And veterans.”
