44.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Bringing the 'Black West' to Malverne
Every year, as the Malverne Memorial Day parade honoring our military winds its way through the village streets, it also showcases some of the more prevalent, integral clubs and organizations that take an active role in every day Malverne life: the Malverne Little League, the Boy Scouts and the Mothers of Malverne to name just a few.
Then, as the parade ends, like a blip in the system of a Mayberry-like Malverne — and to the delight and surprise of many — the parade concludes with a group of riders and their horses from the Federation of Black Cowboys from Howard Beach, Queens.
What’s the connection to Malverne? It’s still a mystery.
“A friend of mine from village administration called the Federation of Black Cowboys several years ago and asked if we would like to be in the parade,” said R.W. “Curly” Hall, a board member of the Federation, who didn’t recall his initial connection’s name. “We had the day open, so we went.” According to village records, the Federation of Black Cowboys first participated in Malverne’s Memorial Day parade four years ago.
The federation, a non-profit, was created in 1994 to share and promote knowledge of the 'Black West'. Hall said the organization seeks to create greater understanding of African American culture and heritage, provides educational opportunities for young people to the art of western horsemanship. “We’re trying to keep the old west alive,” said Hall. “There were many black cowboys back in the day,” he added. Some of the more well known historical heroes in this category include Bill Pickett, Nat Love, Bass Reeves and Stagecoach Mary.
The word 'cowboy', Hall said, actually came about because of the prevalence of black males who tended to farm duties as servants many years ago. In fact, the label “cowboy” is thought to have originally been a derogatory term used to describe black cowhands. “’Hey boy, go get my cow’, a man would say,” said Hall. “That man also had a house boy, a farm boy, a field cotton boy, but the word ‘cowboy’ managed to take on a different meaning. It has a different feel to it; it is more prestigious today,” Hall added.The Federation conducts much of its business out of its headquarters at the Cedar Lanes Stables, just off the Belt Parkway in eastern Brooklyn. Its long-term goals are to purchase land to build a national headquarters, which would include a museum, an indoor riding arena, as well as a library and learning center.
As the black cowboys ended their march along the village streets, we couldn’t help but wonder: why are the cowboys always last in the Malverne Memorial Day Parade? “That’s because the Department of Public Works needs to clean up all the “stuff” from the horses,” said a village employee who chose to remain anonymous. “Nobody wants to step in that during the parade — and that’s the only reason they’re last.”
