Michael Vick has been re-born

The Humane Society of the US is the largest animal rights advocate in America. It’s been doing quite nicely, thank you, for the last 57 years. It never occurred to them that they might benefit from a helping hand, the hand in question being the one belonging to an NFL quarterback who plays for the Philadelphia Eagles -- Michael Vick – and who spent some quality time at Leavenworth federal prison in Kansas.

And you can bet the team payroll that Vick never dreamed that he might one day need the venerable old Humane Society even more than they needed him.

Theirs has been the main voice for applying humane standards, ethical practices and coherent education about the care and handling of animals throughout the country. They don’t throw fake blood on furs and they don’t chain themselves to anything. If every animal rights organization in the country was a church, the Humane Society would be the old school Episcopalians. That’s just the way they are.

Effective Track Record

Their mission has been to “celebrate animals and confront cruelty.” With an effective track record in seeking a sustainable environment for animals of every shape and size through a global campaign of programs and policies, the Humane Society is about as mainstream as an organization gets.

But, for the last year or so, the Humane Society has been forced to handle an unexpected blitz –its new spokesperson, Michael Vick.

And, that’s been good and bad. Good, because Vick and fame go together like hard and time. Bad, because some people will never like Vick, will never accept the sincerity of his contrition and will never forgive the Philadelphia Eagles for giving him a second chance.

Vick’s conviction for financing an illegal interstate dog fighting ring which operated for years on property owned by him resulted in his guilty plea and a sentence of 21 months in prison with additional time in home confinement.

Vick also lost his money, his job (he played for six seasons with the Atlanta Falcons) and his athletic standing as one of only 32 starting NFL quarterbacks on planet Earth.

But all that started to change as soon as he was later picked up by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009. Of course, there was uproar. People began to boycott Eagles games. Vendors began selling anti-Vick T-shirts on Market Street (“Hide your Beagle; Vick’s an Eagle”) and suddenly, everyone had an opinion about something as arcane, as limited and as perverse as dog-fighting.

“We Were, at First, Skeptical . . .”

“We were, at first, disinclined and skeptical against any relationship with Michael Vick,” said Bernie Unti, senior policy advisor and special assistant to the president of HSUS.

“In fact, we were pressing for a stern sentence. We are no friend of dog fighting and are [still] trying to upgrade and toughen up the laws against it.”

However, even while he was still in prison, the Humane Society had some communication with Vick, according to Unti. In the face of Vick’s seemingly genuine repentance, one day, things began to soften between them.

“We were willing to give him a try,” said Unti. “We already have a large anti-dog fighting campaign nationwide with an emphasis in urban areas -- with or without Vick.

“But we were willing [to see what would happen]. Our view was: After all, what is left for him other than being an instrument of good?”

Their New Vision

The Society’s new vision to make Vick a spokesperson for them was met with verbal backlash and numerous threats from supporters. The controversy even resulted in a few supporters suspending their memberships.

“Obviously, we want to satisfy the interests of the membership, but there is a larger goal to reach: Society as a whole,” said Unti. And, Michael Vick could help them do that.

“Vick paid a great price and fell from grace [by his actions]. It would be particularly bad not to allow him [to represent us],” he said.

But the game of football and the game of life and the rehabilitation of a soul can be pretty long and complicated. What very few people anticipated was that: A) in every sense of the word, Vick was still a star, B) his sense of having screwed-up, big time, seemed genuine, and C) he turned out to be a very effective leader and spokesperson, on and off the field. No one, not even the Humane Society, saw much of that coming.

Eventually, some of the disgruntled supporters would even come back to side with the Humane Society and its decision to use Vick. That scored them big points in the anti-cruelty community.

A Cultural Benchmark

According to Unti, Vick addresses mainly school audiences several times a month of his own volition and has traveled to Atlanta, Baltimore, New Haven, and Chicago, as well as throughout Philadelphia.

“Obviously, young people admire him and he’s affected men of color, in particular, even more than our own CEO,” said Unti.

The progress of anti-dog fighting in America can be charted and a huge cultural benchmark has been established since the Vick issue arose.

“We’ve made gains before, but in the aftermath (of Vick); we’ve secured tremendous civic attention. Animal cruelty is now being taken more seriously. It’s a detriment to every community it enters. There’s no doubt that Michael Vick has been an effective spokesperson against it.”