The Urban League of Portland is headed to Pendleton for the Pendleton Round-Up festivities! The Urban League of Portland has actively been involved in Pendleton Round-Up festivities since 2017. It’s a way of reminding our community that all of Oregon belongs to all of us! While in Pendleton for the rodeo, we will be participating in the Westward Ho! Parade Friday, September 13th at 10 am as well as other festivities throughout the weekend! We will also be hosting our 9th Urban League for All of Us Community Conversation on Thursday, September 12th from 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm at the Vert Auditorium. The theme of our Community Conversation will be Black Cowboys and Cowgirls in the United States, we will highlight our history in Western culture and how important it is for the stories of the generations before us to be told. We will continue to make our presence known in Western culture and placemake in Oregon for our community. We will be joined by special guests this year, a representative from the following:
- Cowboys of Color Rodeo
- Black Cowboy Coalition
- One of George Fletcher's family members will honor him
We invite you to join us in Pendleton to connect with the community, eat soul food, and honor local community champions who are doing dynamic work to advance our values, which move the movement forward. Our event will be in person at the Vert Auditorium, space will be limited so please RSVP as soon as you can! From our featured appearance in the Westward Ho! Parade to our Community Conversations highlighting social justice and civil rights issues in rural spaces to happy hour at the rodeo, it’s a busy weekend and a very good time! Please register for this event!
The background picture on the flyer is the legendary Black Cowboy George Fletcher at the Pendleton Round-Up in 1910. George Fletcher, a Saddle Bronc Rider, was inducted into the National Rodeo Hall of Fame in 2001. "George Fletcher. George Fletcher Courtesy Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Library, 67878" Source: Black Cowboys in Oregon - Oregon Encyclopedia. #Let'ErBuck is the famous saying for the Pendleton Round-Up!
We hope you will mark your calendars and join us! Please register for this event!
Urban League of Portland's Pendleton Round-Up Trip 2024 Sponsorship
Looking for sponsorship at a different level? The Urban League of Portland is going to the Pendleton Round-Up September 12th to September 14th! We have a wide range of packages that are designed to fit your budget whether you want to join our trip or only sponsor our trip. We have a goal for the community to help us raise $20,000.00 to take ULPDX Program Participants with us to the Pendleton Round-Up. We have a wide range of packages that are designed to fit your budget whether you want to join our trip or only sponsor our trip. Any amount you can contribute will go a long way to support our trip, no donation is too small. Your unrestricted contributions will build for a more expansive and meaningful trip for our attendees.
2023 Urban League for All of Us Community Conversation - Pendleton
We held our last Community Conversation for 2023 in September in Pendleton for the Pendleton Round-Up festivities. This year, we arrived in Pendleton over forty strong, the largest group the Urban League of Portland has ever brought to the Round-Up. We hosted youth, families, seniors, staff, young professionals, community members, and program participants we serve. While much of the group had never been to Round-Up or even a rodeo in general, Urban League President and CEO Nkenge Harmon Johnson said, “She started bringing the organization out to Pendleton as a way of “placemaking,” creating a space for Black Oregonians who otherwise might not feel comfortable at an event where most of the participants are white.”
We aimed to give our members the full Round-Up experience: a day at the rodeo with seats in the general stands and in the 1910 Tent, a wagon in the non-mechanized Westward Ho! Parade, front row seats to watch the parade, and take the time to connect with the people of Pendleton. We also hosted our 7th Urban League for All of Us Community Conversation at the Pendleton Center for the Arts with food catered by Ann's Best Creole & Soul Food. Moderating this event was the Urban League of Portland Vice President Julia Delgado. The theme of our Community Conversation was Black history and culture in Eastern Oregon, which included Black Cowboys, Black loggers in Maxville, the history of the Triple Nickles- 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion told to us by Pendleton Air Museum’s Debbie Rasmussen, Leonardo Drew - contemporary artist, Hermiston City Councilor Jackie Linton, and locals. We met Leonardo Drew and he spoke about the contemporary art that he makes out of paper. Folks got to get hands-on and make paper like the way Leonardo Drew does that they took home with them.
During our main program, we had presenters share information related to the theme and we honored local community champions, Nixyáawii Community Financial Services, Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton, and Hermiston City Councilor Jackie Linton. These local community champions are doing dynamic work to advance our values, which advance our movement forward.
Please read this article to learn more about our “placemaking” mission at the Pendleton Round-Up: https://www.opb.org/article/2023/09/15/pendleton-oregon-round-up-black-oregonians-eastern-rural-rodeo/
Please visit our platforms to watch our Urban League for All of Us Community Conversation-Pendleton:
Hermiston City Councilor Jackie Linton – Hermiston City Council’s first Black member. Jackie Linton was born and raised in Hermiston, Oregon. She decided it was time to run for city councilor when property tax breaks for some of the new Amazon data centers were decided. She is hoping to make an impact the next time there is a vote on any similar issue. She started in January as the first Black City Council member in Hermiston. She hopes that she can add her experience to the already diverse experience on the council. Jackie is also a member of the Hermiston Cultural Awareness Coalition (HCAC). The Hermiston Cultural Awareness Coalition is a small community coalition focusing on promoting the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and supporting diversity and equality in the greater Hermiston Oregon community. Learn how you can get involved in the City of Hermiston City Council by visiting their website!
Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton – Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton is comprised of people from all walks of life concerned about the disadvantaged in our community. Particularly, those who do not have a home of their own and find themselves living on the street. Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton are all volunteers and come from diverse backgrounds and beliefs. Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton supports our homeless in their efforts to end their homelessness. Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton provides services, essential care, shelter, and meals to folks experiencing homelessness via their day center, warming station, and Veda’s Café. Learn how you can support Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton by visiting their website!
Nixyáawii Community Financial Services (NCFS)- Nixyaawii Community Financial Services (NCFS) is dedicated to improving the financial well-being of individuals and families through safe and affordable loans, credit, and helping to build personal assets and wealth. Nixyaawii Community Financial Services (NCFS) provides loans, homeownership assistance, business development services, youth, and adult financial education to members of the Umatilla Confederated Tribes, Reservation residents, and Tribal employees. Learn how you can support Nixyáawii Community Financial Services by visiting their website!
