The 7th Cavalry got their butts in a sling again after the Little Big Horn Massacre, fourteen years later, the day after the Wounded Knee Massacre. If it wasn't for the 9th Cavalry Buffalo Soldiers, there would of been a second massacre of the 7th Cavalry. Read, and visit site/great history, rescueatpineridge.com

I’m 61 and a lifelong angler who has lived in Wisconsin for 40 years and I have NEVER camped out a day in my life! I have fished early in the morning to late at night, but there was always a roof and a bed involved eventually. I was born in Mississippi and lived in Arkansas and Tennessee prior to moving to Wisconsin. Camping out in the deep South was not recommended recreation at the time.

When I think “vacation” I think Broadway not Yosemite. “Roughing it” for me is a small Holiday Inn. Much of this has to do with security and potential hassle reduction. I am not alone in suffering from the “Wild Bill Hickok” syndrome (Hickok was shot in the back while playing cards) of needing to control one’s space. It is a running joke for dining Black men to jockey for the seat that faces the entrances. And “I got your back!” is a common colloquialism.

Translate this cautiousness to camping and wilderness experiences, and I’m not surprised that few Black people leap at outdoor experiences. There is no way to control the directions from which trouble might come. I know a Black woman, a veteran police officer, who told me of the first time she camped out. An adult at the time, she slept with her gun in her hand.

Taken to an extreme, this "concern" also correlates with childhood obesity – of fear that a kid who walks to the neighborhood playground may not return. So kids are kept inside – watching TV and eating.

I have provided diversity training for Dept. of Natural Resources warden trainees. The supervising warden told of a 6’ 6” 300 lb. Black man who was hunting with some friends in northern Wisconsin and the game warden checked the same man’s hunting license every day for 3 days. The man finally said something to the effect of “It’s still me and my license is still valid!” I and my fishing and hunting friends have similar stories…

You are doing important work. Hopefully, you’ll inspire more young Black people to explore the outdoors.”

Dr. John

Karen

The 7th Cavalry got their butts in a sling again after the Little Big Horn Massacre, fourteen years later, the day after the Wounded Knee Massacre. If it wasn’t for the 9th Cavalry Buffalo Soldiers, there would of been a second massacre of the 7th Cavalry. Read, and visit site/great history, rescueatpineridge.com