History Unveiled: Rainbow Cattle Co.

Date and Time

• Tuesday, Jul 14, 2026  6pm - 7pm

Location

Details

Nicholas Villanueva, Jr. joins us at the Nebraska History Museum on Monday, July 14th, at 6 pm to discuss his award-winning book Rainbow Cattle Co: Liberation, Inclusion, and the History of Gay Rodeo (University of Nebraska Press, 2024), which uncovers an important and overlooked chapter of LGBTQ history: the world of gay rodeo.

From the mid-1970s onward, LGBTQ rodeo athletes carved out a space where they could compete openly, challenge heteronormative ideas about sport and identity, and build community across the rural American West. What began as a safe space for athletes evolved into a powerful philanthropic force, one that was pivotal in the fight against AIDS.

This event is free and open to the public thanks to the support of the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation. This lecture is the second presentation during the museum’s summer History Unveiled program series, each month from June to August.

About Nicholas Villanueva, Jr.

Villanueva, Jr., is an associate professor of ethnic studies and the director of Critical Sport Studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He is the editor of The Athlete as National Symbol: Critical Essays on Sports in the International Arena and Critical Sports Studies: A Document Reader and the author of The Lynching of Mexicans in the Texas Borderlands, winner of two southwestern book awards