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Missourinet

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You are here: Home / Archives for rodeo

Two state lawmakers assess Fair rodeo incident as clown returns to performing

September 13, 2013 By Mike Lear

A key African-American state legislator says she’s satisfied with the State Fair’s handling of a skit mocking the President at a rodeo.

This picture was taken of the dummy wearing a President Obama mask during a routine at a rodeo at the State Fair.

This picture was taken during the controversial routine at a rodeo at the State Fair.

Clown Tuffy Gessling says he  put a President Barack Obama mask on another clown posing as a dummy and the crowd was asked if they wanted to see a bull run it down.  Gessing has not revealed the name of the second person involved.  

In a statement the day after the rodeo, Assistant Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty (D-Kansas City) called the routine “blatant racism,” and “distasteful,” and said that she would not support future funding for the Fair.

In the month since the incident, Gessling has been banned from the Fair and Beatty has met with the Fair Director.

“They took swift action and I think at this point that’s probably all that needs to happen.”

Gessling has said the skit is not new and is not meant to be racist. Beatty is asked if she believes that.

“I’m not sure that it was racially motivated, but it can be seen that way, and I think you have to be careful how you do things because it’s how people perceive it. We want to make sure that the Fair is open to everyone in the state.”

Beatty says she has received calls from people who said they would never go back to the State Fair. After its handling of the incident, she is encouraging them to go back.

Others have told another state lawmaker they won’t go back, but for a different reason.

Representative Tim Remole (R-Excello) says some constituents are telling him that they don’t agree with Gessling’s ban.

“They did not go to the Fair because of it … there will be some things that need to be addressed concerning that.”

Remole says some are telling him that they won’t go back to the Fair until it issues an apology to Gessling.

“It was probably made a bigger deal than what it should have been and I just feel there will be a fallout in some degree.”

Gessling will perform for the first time since the Fair, tonight and tomorrow at the Pro Bull Riding Show in Jefferson City.

Monte Schisler at KWIX in Moberly contributed to this report.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Barack Obama, Gail McCann Beatty, Missouri State Fair, rodeo, Tim Remole

‘Obama’ rodeo clown at State Fair chased down by bull, bi-partisan outrage ensues (AUDIO / VIDEO)

August 11, 2013 By Jessica Machetta

A rodeo clown wearing an Obama mask at the State Fair has spurred political action on the part of Missouri Democrats. A State Fair rodeo announcer told the crowd “tonight’s the night we’re going to smoke Obama,” and then asked the crowd if they wanted to see President Obama get run down by a bull.

Now Democratic leadership — and some Republicans — are decrying the antics as racist, shameful, and crossing the line.

AUDIO: Jessica Machetta reports (1:16)

Minority leader for the House of Representatives Jake Hummel of St. Louis says Missouri taxpayers contribute 400 thousand dollars to the fair, and says the incident is an embarrassment for the entire state.

“Is this what we want to be known for?,” he asks in an interview with Missourinet. He adds that the stunt had racist overtones, but says no matter what race the President is, or what party, it’s inappropriate to insinuate harm would come upon them.

“Poking fun at our president is a time-honored tradition in this country, but the incident Saturday night at the Missouri State Fair rodeo went well beyond the line,” Hummel says. “The concept of an angry bull attempting to trample a black man for the amusement of a crowd is neither entertaining nor funny and is not the type of behavior that our taxpayer-subsidized State Fair should promote.”

And he says regardless of whether the stunt was racist (witnesses say another clown ran up and fiddled with the lips on the Obama mask), the entire act was shameful.

“I don’t think … if there was a white president’s face up there, let’s say it was George bush, and a rodeo clown was out there, and the announcer says ‘Would you like to see a bull trample the president … I don’t care whether the president is white or black, you are trying to convey that you don’t like the president or that you would like to see the president run over by a bull, or in some way hurt,” Hummel says. “I think that’s wrong, and I don’t care who it is.

Hummel and other House Democrats are calling on House Speaker Tim Jones to call an interim committee to investigate the situation and hold someone accountable. Hummel says the fair received $400,000 in taxpayer funds for this year’s events, and asks whether that funding should be withheld if such political stunts are allowed there. He says the Department of Agriculture is the lead agency that oversees the fair, and believes that’s where the questioning should begin.

The Missouri State Fair stated on its Facebook page that, “The performance by one of the rodeo clowns at Saturday’s event was inappropriate and disrespectful, and does not reflect the opinions or standards of the Missouri State Fair. We strive to be a family friendly event and regret that Saturday’s rodeo badly missed that mark.”

Reporter Eli Yokley says he has confirmed the rodeo announcer sas Boonville School Superintendent Mark Ficken, who is also president of the Missouri Cowboy Rodeo Association. (Mark Ficken, the announcer, says it was the clown, not him, making the remarks. See an update to this story HERE.)

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Democrat, says in a press release, “If what’s being reported is true, then it’s shameful and it’s unacceptable. The State Fair is funded by taxpayer dollars, and is supposed to be a place where we can all bring our families and celebrate the state that we love.”

“But the young Missourians who witnessed this stunt learned exactly the wrong lesson about political discourse—that somehow it’s ever acceptable to, in a public event, disrespect, taunt, and joke about harming the President of our great nation,” McCaskill says. “Missouri is better than this, and I expect someone to be held accountable.”

Gov. Jay Nixon, also a Democrat, agrees. In a statement sent to Missourinet affiliate KTTS in Springfield, Nixon says, “the performance was disrespectful and offensive, and does not reflect the values of Missourians or the State Fair.”

Some Republicans are also calling the stunt inappropriate.

Missouri Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder’s Twitter feed Sunday says, “The @MoStateFair celebrates Missouri and our people. I condemn the actions disrespectful to POTUS the other night. We are better than this.”

Rep. Caleb Rowden, a Republican from Columbia, is also using his Twitter account to disapprove.

“What the heck happened at the MO State Fair? Hearing some hubbub, but don’t know what the story is? Fill me in!”, Rowden tweeted Sunday afternoon. Soon after, he posted “I don’t agree w/ this Prez on many things. But he is deserving of respect and shouldn’t be the object of political stunts. Out of line!”

Meanwhile, internet memes are circulating the internet using a photo originally published by Progress Missouri, a liberal watchdog group based in Jefferson City.

obama clown meme

Jackson County Democrats have issued a statement that says, “This is not who we are in Missouri.  Folks in this state are decent and caring, they are fair. We would expect that at a state funded event designed to showcase the Show Me State, more care would be exercised when firing up a crowd.  Disrespecting the President is one thing; whipping a crowd into a frenzy is another. Encouraging physical harm to the President, whatever the party, is not acceptable and should not be tolerated.”

A video of the stunt has surfaced on YouTube.

Filed Under: News, Politics / Govt Tagged With: McCaskill, Missouri State Fair, Nixon, Obama, rodeo

Missouri High School Rodeo Association raises money for Joplin

June 14, 2012 By Bill Pollock

The Missouri High School Rodeo Association holds its annual state finals at the Boone County Fairgrounds, north of Columbia, starting today. On Wednesday evening, the MHSR devoted the first night of the multi-day event to a barrel race benefit for the victims of the Joplin tornado. 98 participants from across the state signed up for the benefit with close to 60% of the proceeds going to the Red Cross and Salvation Army in Joplin.

The state finals start today (6/14) with the first two rounds of competition Thursday and Friday evenings at 6 p.m. The events include bareback riding, breakaway roping, goat tying and calf roping among others. The top 12 finishers from those two rounds will go on to compete Saturday at 6 p.m. The awards ceremony will take place Sunday at 9 a.m.

Competitors who place in the top four will get an opportunity to participate in the 2011 National High School Rodeo finals in July in Wyoming.

Filed Under: Sports Tagged With: high school, rodeo, Sports



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