Each night the rodeo has a different theme, and tonight was "Man Up Crusade" night.
Everyone was encouraged to wear purple to bring awareness to domestic violence.
Man Up Crusade is a non-profit that was launched in 2012 in the state of Idaho and, since then, has traveled the country to different rodeos and bull riding events to bring awareness to the issue.
For about 10 years now, they've brought "purple night" to the Reno Rodeo and have helped raise money for local domestic violence resource centers.
Man Up Crusade’s goal is to show people who are in abusive relationships that there are resources to help change things.
They say having these conversations can be hard, but they need to happen.
And collaborating at big events like this makes it easier for people to see they're not alone.
Sheriff Kieran Donahue, who is Co-Founder of Man Up Crusade, said, "This is a cultural adaptation. It's a learned behavior. We're not born that way. We're not born to be a domestic violence person, abuser, or a victim. It's a learned behavior. So these young people see it in their home and it's okay. It's normalized, unfortunately normalized."
Organizers tell us it's important to continue to have this form of education in schools because teenagers can find themselves in abusive relationships as well, and being so young can make it harder for them to get out of them.
They say if a child lives in an abusive household, they are twice as likely to end up in an abusive relationship compared to others.
Donahue also said, “If we can change the next generation of children and explain to them through programs like this, through our ambassador program in schools, then we can say, look, that's not normal. I know it's normal at home, but it's not normal, and it's unhealthy, and it's criminal."
Because it's such a complex issue that could involve children, finances, and even animals, people are encouraged to reach out if they think someone they know is involved in a domestic or abusive relationship.
Donahue tells us, "It's not there to judge anyone, it's to keep them safe, separate the parties, and then give those the people who are the victims and the offender some tools. Here are some resources, here are some ways out of this. And if we as a society all do that, then we can change this. We truly can."
