Students of the University of Houston’s new course inspired by Beyoncé’s album “Cowboy Carter” received a special gift Feb. 5.
That’s when professor Alicia Odewale got a call from the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo inviting her class to be an official Black Heritage Day exhibitor.
On March 7, students will present research from their projects on Black towns alongside other exhibitors at the rodeo, including the Buffalo Soldiers Museum, Black Cowboy Museum and the Prairie View Trailriders, among several others. Guests will be able to scan a QR code that links to the class website to follow students’ continued research.
“This dropped into our lap and we are taking it,” Odewale said to the Houston Landing Tuesday. “The Black Heritage Committee, we are so grateful to them for even offering this to us. This is beyond what I thought would be possible.”
Odewale had planned Black Heritage Day as one of five field trips for her class and reached out to the Black Heritage Committee about a group rate. She planned to pay for everyone to attend if she could afford it. When she didn’t hear back in time before the semester, she told the class the trip would be optional.
“What I thought was a no, was really them working in the background,” she said.
Instead of a no, Committee Vice Chair, Shala Walker called inviting Odewale’s students to attend as exhibitors.
“Dr. Odewale’s course on the legacy of Black cowboys and Black country western music aligns with our mission to highlight the pioneer and western heritage of African Americans,” a Black Heritage committee spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “Her students will have the opportunity to share their research with visitors on Black Heritage Day, as our goal is to promote awareness of Black western culture.”
The UH course, “Before Cowboy Carter: Black Towns, Black Freedom,” uses the Houston singer’s Grammy Award-winning album to teach the history behind the music. It explores the influence of Black people in shaping the American West, including the long legacy of Black towns, Black cowboys and Black country western artists, and the multiple pathways to Black freedom beyond Juneteenth. The course is being offered for the first time this spring as a hybrid course.
Odewale said the opportunity came at a perfect time because students have been asking when they would have a chance to talk about their researched towns outside of class. She’s also excited that students can put the experience on their CVs.
She surprised her students with the news Feb. 7 at the conclusion of their first field trip, a “Before Cowboy Carter Hoedown” class taught by line dancer Quintessa Haynes. In a video shared on Instagram, she told the students that the field trip went from being optional to mandatory as students erupted in a roar of applause and cheers of excitement.
Odewale said she’s prepping her students to serve as ambassadors of their towns and encouraged them to represent their towns well.
“I told all of them: ‘You are now stewards of someone else’s story, of someone else’s history so how you carry that matters; how you talk about that matters’” Odewale said.
Black Heritage Day at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo will also include a step competition from the Divine 9 Black Greek letter organizations from 2:30 to 4 p.m., and line dancing at 4:15 p.m., both at the Junction Stage. Sabrina Woodard will also perform the national anthem and a celebration of Historically Black College and Universities with drumline performances from Texas Southern University and Prairie View A&M University prior to Bun B’s Birthday Bonanza concert inside NRG Stadium.
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