The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to ban rodeos in the city despite opposition by some in L.A.’s Latino equestrian community, who painted the crackdown as an attack on their culture.
Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, who represents the west San Fernando Valley, led the council in passing the ban, describing in graphic detail the broken bones and pain endured by rodeo animals.
The vote, 14 to 0 with Councilmember Nithya Raman absent, asks the city attorney’s office to draft an ordinance outlawing rodeos in the city.
Just before the vote, Blumenfield introduced an amendment that was co-sponsored by the most public opponent of the measure, Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, who represents the east Valley.
The amendment attempted to assuage concerns that the ban would prevent cultural events, such as charrería, which is popular in Mexico, as well as the Bill Pickett rodeo, a national event for Black riders scheduled for February in the City of Industry.
It carved out exceptions for equestrian and cultural events, including charrería, as long as participants didn’t engage in events where there is bareback bronc riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, calf roping, steer wrestling, team roping or “other events or activities that involves physically taking down an animal, roping an animal, or attempting to ride a bucking animal.”
Rodriguez appeared at a rally opposing the ban just before the council meeting where dozens of rodeo aficionados — some on horses, some wearing traditional rodeo attire — trotted up and down Main Street.
At a news conference before the vote, Rodriguez said the proposed ordinance would be “far more inclusive and impactful to communities of color and cultural practices that have long been treasured here.”
More than 100 people signed up to speak before the vote in council chambers, many wearing cowboy hats and boots.
Jane Velez-Mitchell, a resident of Los Angeles, expressed outrage that concern for animals was pitted against cultural sensitivity.
“I was appalled and assaulted and just baffled that pro-rodeo forces are trying to turn this into a cultural issue. As a proud Latina, I can tell you that I know that torture is not entertainment,” she said during the public comment period.
A caller who did not identify himself pleaded in a quavering voice for the council to oppose the ban.
“I am a proud Angeleno. I was born and raised here. My father rode bulls here, my uncle rode bulls here, and those animals are not abused,” he said. “As an African American born and raised in the city of Los Angeles, please do not ban rodeo.”
A rodeo ban was first proposed by Blumenfield in 2021.
“These animals aren’t part of a show — their torture is the show,” Blumenfield said in an interview Monday. People are being entertained by witnessing animals writhing in pain because a flank strap is tightly wrapped around their belly, he said.
Other jurisdictions throughout the state and nation have put limits on or banned rodeos, including San Francisco, San Juan Capistrano and Pasadena, as well as Pittsburgh; Baltimore County, Md.; Leesburg, Va.; and Fort Wayne, Ind.
California law already regulates rodeos, requiring a veterinarian to be present or nearby and “on-call.” Injury reports must be sent to the state’s veterinary medical board.
A 2022 Times review of those reports showed that since 2001, when the law went into effect, more than 125 animal injuries were reported. The reports were written by attending or on-call veterinarians and submitted to the California Veterinary Medical Board.
The reports documented injuries ranging from superficial abrasions suffered as panicked animals rushed out of their chutes, to crushed skulls, broken legs, gored flanks and snapped spines.
Experts, activists and records prepared by veterinarians at events say these numbers are likely conservative and underrepresent the extent of injuries that happen at rodeos.
In response to concerns that a ban would be akin to an attack on Latino culture, Blumenfield said, “This is not about culture. This is about animal cruelty.”
“There are Black rodeos. There are Latino rodeos. There are gay rodeos … nobody is trying to go after a culture. We’re saying that animal cruelty is something that we, in 2023, should not be supporting,” he said.
Opponents said that they would seek to alter the law when it turns to the City Council for a final vote.
Longtime equestrian Geronimo Bugarin said there are nine elements of charrería, including bull riding, mare riding and calf roping, and appeared dismayed at the prospect of not being able to continue those activities.
“If we lose one of our key elements of charrería, it’s like you don’t have a charrería,” Bugarin said.
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