The Oakland Black Cowboy Association celebrated 50 years over the weekend with its annual community event.
On Oct. 5, the group hosted its yearly Black Cowboy Parade and Festival at De Fremery Park to celebrate five decades of being in service. OBCA is a nonprofit committed to educating both children and adults “about the contributions of people of color in the settling of the West while actively enhancing and promoting the furtherance of the African American cowboy in modern society,” according to Visit Oakland.
OBCA president Wilbert McAlister told KQED.org that he loves seeing the fellowship that takes place between the Oakland residents.
“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,” McAlister, who is a grandparent, said.
He added, “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.”
Some of those in attendance reminisced about neighborhood camaraderie that’s been nurtured over the years and expressed their hopes that future generations will carry on this vibrant tradition. Melanie Jackson hails from a family of horse lovers and is now sharing her passion for riding with her 3-year-old daughter.
“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,” Jackson explained.
Samuel Styles, who rides horses regularly and is part of the OBCA, attributes his lifelong love for riding to a pivotal moment from over 30 years 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,” Styles stated.
Although the parade has shortened over the years, Styles noted that the event has been attracting more attendees, with music and horse rides adding to the appeal.
“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 describes herself as “an avid horseman” with over 40 years of experience. She also leads an organization of Black riders and chooses to participate in the OBCA parade to uplift and honor their common interest in the cowboy culture.
“I am just so glad to see so many Black horsemen,” Jackson shared. “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.”
Mia Marshall credits the annual parade for her desire to become a cowgirl. What began as her simply attending the parade for some recreational fun led to her enjoyment of horseback riding after she rode the same horse three consecutive parades. She takes joy in offering others the chance to ride horses.
“We love doing the parades. We set up shop and let people ride [the horses],” Marshall said. “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.”
To find out more about The Oakland Black Cowboy Association, head to its Facebook page.
