A black calf roper challenges the American West’s myths at the rodeo

American rodeo isn’t known for its ethnic diversity, but that does’t stop Kendrick Domingue from pursuing his dream of reaching the prestigious National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. Certainly the best (and perhaps only) African-American cattle roper in Lafayette, Louisiana, Domingue is a mainstay in the local rodeo scene, roping for modest crowds, collecting small checks and practising tirelessly to reach the top of his sport. Although he occasionally deals with ‘snotty looks’, mostly from ‘old people set in their ways’, he quickly brushes them off, rarely passing a single day without a rope in hand.