Supervisors Ban Horse Tripping

The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday passed an ordinance banning the act of horse tripping, one of the traditional features of the charreada, or Mexican rodeo, which had gained popularity in this country but has been criticized as inhumane by animal rights supporters.

In Mexico, the charreada is a national sport that features the charros , or cowboys, wearing colorful costumes of sombreros, leather chaps and long bow ties and the traditional Mexican hat dance.

The charreada has gained wide popularity throughout the Southwest, and especially in Los Angeles, which has more than 30 charro associations.

But the rodeos have angered animal rights supporters, who have singled out the mangana-- one of nine traditional events in which charros fell galloping broncos by roping their two front legs--as inhumane. Supporters of the traditional rodeo event say they are victims of prejudice who have been unfairly attacked for holding different cultural norms.

County officials say the new ordinance, which is set to take effect in 30 days, is designed to enforce minimum standards of safety at all rodeos. The ordinance states that “no person shall intentionally trip or fell any equine animal by the legs or by any means whatsoever for the purpose of entertainment or sport.”

Pedro Vaca, the California-based president of the Federacion de Charros, U.S.A., which includes about 60 charro associations nationwide, said his group is planning to protest the county’s new ordinance.

“We want to try to get them to change their minds,” Vaca said.

He argued that the mangana is an important part of the rodeo that rarely disables or kills the animals and is no more dangerous than calf-roping or traditional north-of-the-border rodeo events.

“It’s like soccer with no goals or baseball with no runs,” Vaca said. “And this will affect the kids, who we are trying to keep out of the streets and interested in their traditional culture. A lot of people are wondering what’s going to be next.”