Regardless of what Hollywood and mainstream culture show us, Black cowboys were not a rare spectacle on the range, and the profession was an opportunity to experience freedom and survive racism.
Post-Civil War, approximately one out of four cowboys was Black. Most held occupations such as bodyguards, nurses, and cooks, as they accompanied white riders on their travels. But Black cowboy culture is much deeper than that.
In American history, white cowboys were originally called cowhands, while Black cowhands were called Cowboys. The cow from cowhand was intertwined with the racist, derogatory term “boy” often used against Black men to shame and demean their social standing. However, Black cowhands were far from childlike in their skillsets.
Throughout the 1800s, Black cowboys obtained their expertise through performing tasks that employers or slave owners wouldn’t or didn’t have the skill sets to do, such as taming wild horses, rounding up herds of livestock, and traveling through rough terrain.
Black cowboys still exist all across the country today, and their work helped shape this country. Their story also reminds us of an important truth: we should always be the ones to tell our stories because we cannot trust others to speak for us.