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African-American horsemen bring Western culture to San Antonio's east side

Young people of color follow in the hoof prints of a local rodeo legend.

SAN ANTONIO — If you ‘giddy up’ on over to San Antonio’s east side, it’s not uncommon to catch a few urban cowboys trotting down Gembler Road or Joe Louis Drive. 70-year-old Tex Williams is known to be a trailblazer for young black horsemen today.

“I am the first black cowboy to win the Texas State High School Final,” Williams said. “I won that in 1967 and I went to the national high school finals in 1967 and was the first black to do that.”

He returned in 1968 and won again, then continued to round up accolades through his college years. He told KENS 5 he’s not slowing down any time soon. “As long as I can get up in the morning and crawl up on [my horse] and don’t need any help, I’m going to keep riding,” he said.

That Western spirit has taken over, and horsemanship has become a popular way of life for young African-Americans on the east side. Williams said the lifestyle is a productive and positive path for the city’s young people of color.

“You have guys, one black cowboy to win the World Champions eight times, Fred Whitfield. Just like baseball, basketball and anything else, if you can see more blacks that are accomplishing something in it, you’ll get more blacks that will come in and try to do that,” he said.

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