By Ruth Ann Ruiz
The Post Newspaper Features Editor
Sarah Bird, novelist, screenwriter and journalist, was the keynote speaker on Saturday at Galveston’s Nia Cultural Center at 2217 The Strand. Bird, author of the book “Juneteenth Rodeo,” spoke about her work as a young photojournalist in the mid to late 1970s.
Back then, she worked without a telephoto lens. This meant that as Bird covered rodeos, she was in the ring when the pens were opened. Her book celebrating Black cowboys, which she shared with the audience Saturday, was not published until June 4, 2024.
“I showed my fellow journalists my Black cowboy photos, and they were not interested, so I put them in plastic tubs under my bed,” Bird explained.
But time passed, and her historic photos of Black cowboys became in-demand. All her original photos, which she shot in film, were converted into a digital format, making them ready to be shared with the rest of the world.
Each photo in Bird’s book is a rare look into Black community rodeos held throughout Texas. Community rodeos are less common these days because houses and businesses have taken over the land where community rodeos once put up temporary pens and fences, Bird explained.
She was a witness to a way of life that very few people captured on film, and now her photos are part of a collection that is on display until March 8 at the Nia Cultural Center.
University of Houston student photographer, Dela Acolatse attended the event and spoke with Bird who offered a few pointers on shooting photos of fast moving subjects in an athletic arena.
To learn more about Bird go to: https://www.sarahbirdbooks.com.
