Karen Sussman’s grandchildren call her ‘Gramma Horsie.’ They live with their parents in Arizona and have had rare visits with their grandmother since she’s taken on full responsibility for the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros. Called ISPMB for short, the non-profit’s ranch is in Lantry, South Dakota. The outfit was inspired by Velma ‘Wild Horse Annie’ Johnston more than fifty years ago with the help of thousands of children around the world.
The petite, physically handicapped, insurance company secretary got on the highway to drive to work one day. Velma was stuck behind a truck dripping a stream of blood along the roadway. She was aghast and followed the truck until it stopped. Her inspection revealed wild mustangs, a stallion shot in the eyes, foals trampled on the floor bed and horror and misery. The truck driver consoled the woman by assuring her not to be concerned since the horses were going to slaughter anyway.
Velma crusaded single handedly, despite threats, hardships, opposition and western indifference to the plight of America’s wild horses. As the story of cruelty and U.S. government connivance and corruption got out, Velma drew support from children. She was dubbed ‘Wild Horse Annie’ by her enemies to mock her efforts. Velma liked the moniker and instead of rejecting the hatred and scorn it implied she adopted it. With it Wild Horse Annie Velma Johnson and thousands of school children succeeded in obtaining passage of important federal legislation to protect wild, free roaming horses and burros on U.S. government lands.
Opposition to wild horses on public lands has never ceased. Corruption, incompetence and bureaucracy in the U.S. Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM), under whose jurisdiction management of wild horses on public lands falls, continued unabated. Competition for use of public lands increased.