‘We all belong’: Hunters of color work to grow community, outreach | Lifestyle [Video]

The sound of the Eastern Plains is like a symphony to Crystal Egli.

From the gobbles of wild turkeys to the crows of pheasants, Egli describes it as a “cacophony of animal noises.”

With senses heightened, she is silent. She listens for the snap of a twig or the smallest shift of movement. Engulfed by the prairie, she waits.

“It is actually remarkably loud out in the plains if you can stay really, really quiet,” she said.

That concentration is what Egli enjoys about hunting.

As the board president for Hunters of Color, a national nonprofit working to increase participation in hunting among people of color, Egli knows firsthand what it’s like to enter the hunting world as a Black woman. The organization has about a dozen ambassadors representing regions across the country, including Colorado.

America’s hunting population is predominately white and male dominated. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 2022 National Survey, 77% of hunters are male and 22% are females (another …