Downfall of an athlete, emergence of a change agent

Can Michael Vick bring down dog fighting in America? I supremely doubted this when he was convicted 2 years ago. Matter of fact I was too infuriated to contemplate how dog fighting could benefit from Vick's downfall.

Two years later Vick has been reinstated to the NFL after signing a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles for $1.6 million with the second-year option worth $5.2 million. Hearing the terms of the deal my first reaction was to hope some or all of the earnings would be seized or matched for animal relief agencies. But Wayne Pacelle, President & CEO of the Humane Society saw an implausible opportunity and recruited Vick as a spokesman against dog fighting. Of all the rabid Vick opposition the Humane Society could very well be the most virulent, which raises eyebrows for this partnership. Pacelle offers this justification:

“I sat with the man, but I still don’t know what’s in his heart. He told me he did terrible things to dogs. He said he grew up with dogfighting as a boy, and that he never sufficiently questioned it as he grew into manhood. He said this experience has been a trauma and he’s changed forever. And he said he wants to show the American public that he is committed to helping combat this problem. He asked for an opportunity to help. I want to give him that opportunity.”

Pacelle scratches on the ultimate driver for Vick's potential success as an agent of change - street credibility. Vick witnessed his first dog fight at the age of 8 years old. His experience is the norm in inner urban cities. The Anti-Cruelty Society in conjunction with the Chicago Police Department offers these frightening statistics: "More than 25% of K-6th graders had attended at least one dog-fight. When asked about his experiences, one 3rd grade boy responded that dog fights are a great place to meet girls. The children who are taught from ages as young as four and five that animals are meant to be fought to the death and treated with cruelty are more likely to be future violent criminals."

The Humane Society has worked diligently since 2002 to combat the alarming trend of dog fighting. However legislation in the form of anti dog fighting laws has not been able to stem the proliferation of the sport. Conservative statistics indicate 40,000 professional dog fighting rings exist with an additional 100,000 street fights, mostly gang driven.

What's the allure? Money for one as some fights can offer a purse of $100k. But undermeath the financial payoff lies a deeper problem rooted in socio-economical struggle. And it starts with kids. Statistics indicate the most active dog fighters are aged 13 - 17 rampant in almost every urban city. Dog fighting has become a means of acquiring social stature for children born to low income families, living in dense urban cities, where the likelihood for education, much less income above the poverty limit, is hopeless.

Dog Fighting establishes their reputation for toughness and macho street cred. And while the fights are more skirmishes than the gladiator pits of organized matches the result are the same; tens of thousands of emotionally maimed, physically mutilated or dying dogs and a generation of juvenile owners self taught in apathy and violence.

But in the end it all does end in violence. For the dog reared in abuse & aggression. For the thousands of household pets stolen from happy homes and used as "pit bait". For the kid raised to view animals and brutality as entertainment. Where hope does a child have coming from the degradation of an animal? Obviously none. It's pretty obvious the only place to go from commiting a crime on an animal is escalation to violent crime committed on a human.

Hopefully Vick will be able to penetrate the dispassion for the sport and the glamour it holds. In a 60 minute interview he says "Blame me."