News

An African-American horse owner was asked to boycott Kentucky Derby for Breonna Taylor – but he refused

African-American horse owner Greg Harbut was asked by Black Lives Matter activists to pull out of the 146th Kentucky Derby to protest the police killing of Breonna Taylor but he refused.

“I stand with Black Lives Matter, and I stand for justice for Breonna Taylor,” the 35-year-old told CNN. “But as an African-American man involved in an industry that’s not very inclusive to people who look like me, there’s no way that I could sit out on one of the largest race days in the U.S. and not bring awareness to the contributions that African-Americans have given to horse racing.”

Harbut, who owns horse Necker Island, is one of the industry’s few African-American owners. Coming from a family long connected with horse racing for many decades, he believed that participating in the derby could help spotlight the contributions of African Americans to the industry.

“The history of the Kentucky Derby started with African Americans. The first horse, Aristides, was trained by an African-American named Ansel Williamson and ridden by an African-American jockey named Oliver Lewis,” Harbut said.

“But we are the only Black representation in the Kentucky Derby this year. There hasn’t been any representation of us for the past 13 years,” he continued.

“…This is a race my grandfather participated in in 1962 … and he was not allowed to be listed nor attend that Derby,” Harbut said. “I don’t know how many non-African Americans have had multi-family lineage participate in ownership, but I would think that is a rarity among us as African Americans.

“So that is something I am very proud of. I’m extremely emotional and happy to be able to take on the legacy of my family at this time.”

Ahead of the Kentucky Derby, Louisville activists demanded the event be canceled, arguing that it was not appropriate to organize the famed horse race as people were still hurting from Taylor’s killing.

One of such groups, the Justice and Freedom Coalition, said that a boycott of the event was necessary in order to “put much-needed pressure on the state to not only complete a thorough investigation of Ms. Taylor’s case, but to send a clear message that we will not allow these injustices to continue.”

Despite the protests, Churchill Downs, which hosts the Kentucky Derby, said in a statement Thursday that the race would be held. “We know there are some who disagree with our decision to run the Kentucky Derby this year,” the statement said.

“We respect that point of view but made our decision in the belief that traditions can remind us of what binds us together as Americans, even as we seek to acknowledge and repair the terrible pain that rends us apart.”

The Kentucky Derby, which has never been postponed or canceled over bad weather, was moved from May 2 this year to the first Saturday in September due to the coronavirus pandemic. This year’s event was, therefore, held with no spectators in the stands, but not without protests from the streets of Louisville.

Mildred Europa Taylor

Mildred Europa Taylor is a writer and content creator. She loves writing about health and women's issues in Africa and the African diaspora.

Recent Posts

This is how The Oracle Media founder went from a small-town girl to a big city media mogul in NYC

Jordan Benston is the founder, owner, and operator of The Oracle Media, a black female-owned…

1 hour ago

Preteen who started college at 7 earns associate degree at 12 years old

Cameron Robinson has attained a significant milestone at the age of twelve. He received an…

4 hours ago

Stevie Wonder‘s 74th birthday crowned with Ghanaian citizenship

Legendary singer Stevie Wonder had one of his wishes fulfilled when he celebrated his 74th…

4 hours ago

This Black-owned ice cream brand was founded over 100 years ago and still going strong

Baldwin Richardson Foods is a global manufacturer of custom ingredients for the food and beverage…

5 hours ago

Georgia grandmother defies the odds to become a registered nurse at 69

Loretta Mack has fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a registered nurse at 69 years…

6 hours ago

Why lightning survivors are buried in Ethiopia

A community in eastern Ethiopia buried twelve lightning survivors up to their necks and also…

7 hours ago

Mother wants answers after her daughter allegedly consumed ‘poisonous candies’ her classmate gave her

Da'Kyah, a Minneapolis kindergartener, had to be hospitalized after suffering a mysterious illness as a…

7 hours ago

Tiffany Haddish explains why she thought she would die before turning 21

Eritrean-American comedian and actress Tiffany Haddish recently opened up about a period in her childhood…

8 hours ago

5 years after becoming the first Black mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, Steven L. Reed is now president of AAMA

Steven L. Reed is the first black mayor of Montgomery, Alabama. The state of Alabama…

21 hours ago

Maryland: Former NFL player Tobias Dorzon makes history as Chef of The Year

Chef Tobias Dorzon, an ex-NFL player turned chef and restaurateur, has been selected Chef of…

22 hours ago

Expectant mother gives birth in speeding Maserati and defends dissertation in maternity ward same day

Tamiah Brevard-Rodriguez welcomed her son in the passenger seat of her wife’s Maserati, then seamlessly…

1 day ago

Aspiring doctor who nearly drowned says he holds no ill will toward female friend who pushed him

An aspiring doctor, who nearly drowned after being pushed into a Louisiana lake, has indicated…

1 day ago

Meet the daughter of Nigerian immigrants who is the first Black woman to earn U-M Robotics PhD

Oluwami (Wami) Dosunmu-Ogunbi is the first Black woman to get a PhD in robotics at…

1 day ago

Richard Slayman, first person who benefited from genetically modified pig kidney, passes away

A Boston man who was a beneficiary of a genetically modified kidney transplant from a…

1 day ago

Suspect in horrific Bronx rape case turned in by his mom

Beverly Parks, the mother of the man suspected of lassoing a woman around the neck…

1 day ago