Gay Rodeo Communities Fight Back As Trump Policies Threaten Their Existence
The dusty chutes of Corona Ranch outside Phoenix fill with laughter and friendship as contestants gather for a decades-old tradition. According to reporting by SBS News, these gay rodeos that have long given cowboys and cowgirls like Moss Scavenger a place to be themselves now face fresh challenges as Donald Trump reclaims the White House.
“Gay and rodeo have always gone together,” Moss says with a grin. “You look at a cowboy with that fringe, and you tell me that’s not a little gay.”
Competing for the first time, Moss brings their animal rescue skills from New Jersey to Arizona. With bright fingernails and focused determination, they prepare for chute dogging, wrestling steers to the ground after dragging them across a line.
Moss identifies as gender fluid, calling themselves “a cowbabe.” Around them, pride flags flutter as fans cheer contestants from across America.
Why These Gay Rodeos Matter
Gay rodeos began in the 1970s to create inclusive spaces for people excluded from traditional competitions. They added unique events like goat dressing, bringing fun to standard rodeo lineups.
“All the queer communities in the US right now are looking for more community to build up,” Moss explains. “That’s why there’s so many people at this event, because it feels safe inside these gates.”
Political Pressure Grows
Donald Trump’s return brought immediate changes. He signed three executive orders affecting the LGBTQIA+ community: recognising only two biological sexes, ending diversity programs in federal workplaces, and banning transgender people from military service.
The American Civil Liberties Union now tracks 575 proposed bills targeting LGBTQIA+ rights nationwide, with over 400 moving forward in various states.
These political shifts have created tensions even within the rodeo community.
“There’s a lot of elder gays, as we call them,” says Moss. “With folks of the older generations, it’s harder for them to grasp the idea of gender identity.”
Richard, who asked to use only his first name, remembers the first Arizona gay rodeo in 1986. As one of two vendors at that inaugural event, he witnessed aggressive protesters with placards who hit cars and shouted slurs.
While Phoenix has grown more accepting, Richard says recent incidents worry him. His hat store was vandalised with homophobic graffiti, and he reports confrontations since Trump’s re-election.
“I even had one guy from Texas trying to take me out in the parking lot and beat me up because I wouldn’t say I supported Donald Trump,” he shares.
Despite growing concerns, the gay rodeo community continues to gather. For people like Moss, these events provide both sport and sanctuary—something worth fighting to preserve as America’s political landscape shifts.
