Fort Worth Hosts Cowboys of Color Rodeo, MLK Day Parade

FORT WORTH, Texas. Cowtown focuses on passion, diversity and culture.

On Monday, the Cowboys of Color rodeo took place at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day event attracted the attention of African American, Hispanic, and Native American cowboys and cowboys.

For Kevin Woodson, cowboy and co-host, this event is one of the most beloved of his career.

“It’s a pride, a legacy, a western, basically,” Woodson said. “Many people have no idea that between a quarter and a third of all cowboys on the Western Frontier were African American.”

On Monday, women like College Station cowgirl Brittany Amos competed in barrel racing.

“It means a lot, we don’t have many women in the rodeo,” Amos said.

She told the WFAA that she was proud to be part of the Cowboys of Color event.

“It’s important to have it so you can see different people from different walks of life and people of color to show that we also do rodeo,” Amos said.

Amos said the event is especially important because it coincides with MLK Day.

On Monday morning, crowds filled the sidewalks on Commerce Street in downtown Fort Worth for the MLK parade.

The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo has been running since 1896 and currently runs for 23 days.

Along with the Cowboys of Color Rodeo, the rodeo includes the Best of the West Ranch Rodeo, Best of Mexico Celebración, Bulls Night Out Extreme Bull Riding, and Texas Champions Challenge.

The rodeo also has livestock and horse shows, activities and exhibits for children, live music, a halfway carnival, and shops.