NEWS&VIEWScontinued... To read more about these two Maryland-bred
champions, go to mdthoroughbredhalloff
ame.com.
D.C. Police Disband Mounted Unit On August 21, WJLA reported that the
Metropolitan Police Department confi rmed that the D.C. mounted police unit is being disbanded. A spokesperson for the department told WJLA the changes were due to recent budget cuts by the D.C. City Council.
Diversity Scholarship Follow Up
In this issue on page 17, you will read a series of interviews with the three Maryland riders who were among the winners of Nation Me- dia’s inaugural Diversity Scholarship. After these initial interviews were conducted, the owner of the Plantation Field in Unionville, PA, canceled the lease of the property held by Plantation Field Equestrian Events, Inc., stat- ing they were terminating the running of horse trials at their property due to pressure received from Eventing Nation and USEA to change the name of the farm and event. According to Denis Glaccum, President of
Plantation Field Equestrian Events, Inc., the word “Plantation” in this case refers to the long history the farm has with trees and hedges being planted in the fi elds by a local Boy Scout troop. Glaccum stated in a September 16 press release, “Colonial Pennsylvania considered properties less than 100 acres a farm and properties with more than 100 acres a plantation. T ere is no reference to race in this defi nition. T e Union- ville area is historically a Quaker community. T e Quakers were one of the earliest abolitionist groups and fought against slavery. T is area was also part of the underground railroad.” USEA CEO Rob Burk and USEA President Max Corcoran issued the following joint state-
ment on behalf of the USEA on September 17, “Having this historic competition close isn’t the right result for the sport, and the United States Eventing Association (USEA) is work- ing hard to fi nd a solution. T e organizer and landowners operate exceptional events on a beautiful piece of land. We are deeply sensitive to the history of the word “plantation” and its connection to slavery; however, this property has no known connections to slavery and was instead named after ‘plantings’ on the property. We understand that neither the organizer nor the landowners have ever intended to cause any discomfort related to the name of the event and to imply otherwise is a disservice to our orga- nizers, landowners, and our sport. T e USEA does not have the ability to require an event to change its name as we are required to carry the US Equestrian (USEF) licensed name of the competition on our calendar of events. How- ever, we are hopeful that an acceptable solution to this issue can be reached.” In response to the issue over Plantation Field, Helen Casteel, one of the scholarship winners interviewed for T e Equiery’s October article, wrote a letter to Eventing Nation’s Editor- in-Chief, Leslie Wylie, asking if any people of color in the eventing community were involved with the decision to approach the owners and campaign to change the name. In her let- ter, Casteel suggested, “Instead of pushing for the name change and having the confl ict with organizers and owners escalate, I would have requested a simple paragraph be permanently placed on the website, show brochure and any other offi cial publication noting the history of the word ‘Plantation’ in this country; explaining the actual meaning behind the name ‘Planta- tion Field’ along with clear statement that all races, genders, and religions are welcome.”
In addition, Casteel wrote in her letter, “On
a personal level, this situation puts me in an uncomfortable position. My horse is recovering from an injury so we aren’t doing any recog- nized horse trials this year. Next year I’m wor- ried that people will look at me at shows and think I’m part of the reason Plantation Field isn’t running anymore. I’m now feeling more like an outsider than I ever have.” Dawn Edgerton-Cameron, also featured in
this month’s article, issued the following state- ment to T e Equiery, “Regarding the recent developments surrounding the Unionville event. I think it’s sad that rather than engage in a dialog that considers how one’s brand is viewed through the lens of both current events and historical context as others have done re- cently (i.e., Brown and Cornell Universities, the state of Rhode Island), that the leadership of one of the premier events in the nation in- stead chose to throw a temper tantrum. T e former approach would have uplifted not only their status as leaders on the issue they say they care about and positioned them, I believe, on the right side of history. “Instead, while this is a temporary blow to Area
II and the surrounding areas, I am confi dent that the eventing community will establish another in its place as they have when other iconic events have shut down. In the meantime, if we are to move ahead as a community and as a society, we need to be willing to have diffi cult conversations on sensitive topics in a civil matter, and without knee-jerk reactions. In the meantime, let us all remember that words matter. Representation matters. T oughtfulness matters.” To read our interviews with these two Mary- landers, as well as polo player Lea Jih-Vieira, see page 17 of this issue.
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