Vick: Huge Rally of Support

by NOIS, Nation of Islam Sportsblog

As the media circus and rush to deny Michael Vick of his right to due process and the reasonable granting of being assumed innocent until proven guilty are threatening to destroy his career, a huge group of supporter gathered outside the Georgia Dome yesterday to voice their support for Vick.

Despite ominous skies and thunder (which, might be construed by some as a sign from above), hundreds of persons arrived to unite in a vociferous reminder that Michael Vick is a human being and Michael Vick has rights.

About 200 people braved rain and thunderclaps outside the Georgia Dome on Sunday to condemn the country, the media, Nike and, most of all, the Atlanta Falcons for treating Michael Vick like a dog.

The throng of supporters wonder why the Falcons and Nike would so hastily abandon a man that they were so eager to overpay. Why they would not stand by him until this situation was resolved in the court of law.

Why NIKE, which runs sweatshops all over South East Asia would even care about a few dozen dogs.

Look at what he has done for this city — he's made this city a ton of money every Sunday," said Hiram Melvin, 50 of Decatur. "This dogfighting has been going on for years. It's not something that just started. It's not a big deal."

Mr. Melvin makes a salient point. Since when does something like dog fighting take precedence over capitalist acquisition of funds? Since when does some back woods blood lust supersede "tons of money every Sunday"?

Much of the resentment Vick supporters feel is aimed at how quickly the NFL chose to present Vick as appearing guilty.

Many of Vick's supporters outside the Dome on Sunday said the Falcons and the NFL should stand up to animal rights groups such as the American Humane Society and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. They said the NFL had thrown Vick to the wolves almost immediately while it had allowed Baltimore Ravens Ray Lewis and Jamal Lewis to play. "I don't like the double standard they have with Vick," said Rod Green, 54, of East Point. "They look the other way in these other cases and they castrate Vick."

Vick's supporters in Atlanta also feel that the media's portrayal of Vick because of these accusations has been biased and unfair.

County last Christmas and told a cashier she was too broke to buy toys for her son. Vick overheard and slipped her a $100 bill, she said. "He helped me buy my son Christmas," she said. "When you don't have much, $100 is a lot."

Where was the media when this happened? Why was this not front page news? Not one story on how Vick treats humans, but hundreds of stories on how he allegedly allows dogs to be treated on his property.

Well, fans in Atlanta have had enough.

The New Order National Human Rights Organization is calling for a boycott and protest of Falcons games until Vick returns to the field — and season-ticket holders in the crowd plan to demand their money back. The NFL has asked Vick to stay away from training camp until its investigation is completed. His trial, set for Nov. 26, also could delay his return.

Essentially, what has been a story that has broken down along racial lines; with whites already calling Vick guilty and Negroes pleading for the recognition of Vick's right to due process and assumption of innocence until a verdict is reached, is now breaking down along species lines.

PETA and animal rights groups versus Human Rights groups.

Clearly, as humans, we all should be standing behind Vick and supporting him. If we allow the animal rights people to deny Vick's due process, we could all lose our rights in the long run.

SCLC President Charles Steele Jr. said his organization prefers to focus on Vick's redemption and plans to honor him for his community contributions at its convention next month in Atlanta. "We need to support him no matter what the evidence reveals," Steele said.

We couldn't agree more.

In the face of this maelstrom created by an insensitive and agenda'd media, we should be focusing on the positive side of Vick and hopefully the media will give the convention and the meeting to honor him full coverage next month.

For some reason, we get the feeling that it will be a short meeting.