Michael Vick Cartoons
on August 27, 2007
Category: Black America
When I first heard about the Michael Vick dog abuse case, I came out in support of Vick being punished for involvement in an illegal dogfighting setup that was found on his Virginia property. I also stated that race should not be a factor in the case, as many of Vick’s Black supporters believed Vick was being made an example of due to the harshness of the public and legal reaction against him.
Weeks later, Vick has been suspended without pay from the NFL, pleaded guilty to charges in connection with the dogfighting case, but not necessarily to the more brutal allegations, is now facing at least a year in prison, and has been the recipient of one of the most intense name-through-the-mud campaigns I have ever witnessed.
A simple perusal of the political cartoons published today across this country will give you some incite into the PR lynching of Michael Vick. Don’t get me wrong, Vick should be punished for animal abuse, but we really need to examine the racial overtones taking place in the discourse surrounding this case.
In the cartoons below, Vick is shown en route to being neutered, he’s being called an animal, and his Black supporters are being mocked and urinated upon simply for stating that he should return to the NFL after he is punished.
Would there be so much animosity toward Vick if he were white? Many have stated that there would have been less controversy had his victim been a woman rather than a dog. So why is there so much public hostility toward Michael Vick? Perhaps because actual lynching is outlawed in this country, we need to find more high tech ways of destroying this man’s life.
He should be punished for his crimes, he should be allowed to atone for his sins, and then he should be allowed to return to football. His case has raised awareness for animal abuse in such a high-profile manner; new laws protecting animals will come from this.
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13 Comments so far
1. kip
August 27th, 2007 at 11:27 pm
i hear you sir…
2. omodudu
August 28th, 2007 at 12:56 am
lol
3. balrog
August 29th, 2007 at 7:36 pm
One of the great signposts for the end of a civilization is the near universal treatment of serious crimes as trivial and non serious crimes as worthy of severe punishment. Case and point - Mary Winkler gets 210 days for killing her husband (blasting him the back with a shotgun while he slept). Don’t worry though she used the now in vogue female catch all “he hit me” (no evidence or previous reports naturally) so therefore any action she takes is justified. Meanwhile we have Vick looking at 12 - 18 months in prison for dog fighting. Right. Kill a dog get a year in jail, kill a person and get less. To bad Vick wasn’t a girl maybe he could have said “they bit me” and gotten off. So the lesson is clear here folks - if you are going to gamble on death make sure the victim is a person (particularly a male). Can we just devolve into complete barbarism already and cut out the notion that any real moral law outside of G-D himself exists?
4. Oaktown Girl
August 30th, 2007 at 7:51 pm
That cartoon with the dog urinating on the men from the NAACP is the worst, and it belies the assertion that there are no racist overtones in public opinion on this matter. I can’t make out the name of the artist, and I’d really like to know who it is, as well as the newspaper where it originated. Would you please be so good as to let us know who it is? Thanks!
5. Sokari
August 30th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
Lynch and castrate the Black man but make him beg first then piss on the NAACP! It was racist from the start!
6. Campaign to Sack Michael Vick Blog Carnival 4 : Campaign to Sack Michael Vick
August 30th, 2007 at 11:33 pm
[…] 4. Black Looks - : michael_vick_cartoons.html […]
7. Kierrien
August 31st, 2007 at 3:02 am
No way, he should NEVER be allowed to play again. If that was a white man he would never be allowed to play on the pitch again but once again the now-turning racist organization known as the NAACP want him to go back to play football? No way, he must face up to his crimes and face the penalties like what everyone must do.
Equal rights MEAN equal rights.
8. STLR FAN
August 31st, 2007 at 2:43 pm
This is NOT a race issue. A majority of people,regardless of race, in this country have pets. Most of those people, AGAIN regardless of race, love their pets like any other member of the family. What Michael Vick, and ANYONE ELSE INVOLVED IN DOG FIGHTING- REGARDLESS OF RACE, SEX, RELIGION, did is disgraceful and inexcusable.
Dog fights and all people involved with them are SICK SICK SICK!
9. Hare
September 1st, 2007 at 10:45 pm
Actually theres nothing wrong with he did, dogs are just animals…they are inferior and they have no feelings, they were made to amuse us in any way or fashion….fights to the death is no exception.
10. Joan Kelly
September 3rd, 2007 at 4:49 pm
Uh, Hare, you are insane unless you are being sarcastic.
STLR - the belief that torturing and killing animals is wrong is not a “race” issue, but those cartoons certainly are. Are you fucking kidding me? The history of lynching and castration of black men in this country, and a “Michael Vick off to the the neutering plant!” cartoon is acceptable?
People want to talk about who’s the animal, as in who is lowering him/herself in character in this case, fine. When a person does something horrible, anyone who uses that as cover for their own horrible behavior in response has tarnished his/her own character.
What happened at Michael Vick’s place with those dogs, and everything he is accused of doing, is unbearable for me to think about. And so, too, is the way that people will use any excuse to flaunt their racism in situations where they feel they can get away with it.
Thank you for talking about this, Kym.
11. Zach
September 4th, 2007 at 5:46 am
I strongly disagree with what you’ve said here. If news were to break that Bret Favre or Peyton Manning were involved in these illegal dog fighting rings too, they should be banned from the game and faced with criminal charges.
It’s not a racial issue. The NAACP should have no say in a situation like this. It’s not because he’s black but it’s because he’s done something illegal and immoral in the majority of U.S. Citizen’s eyes.
12. Frank Tillery
September 5th, 2007 at 12:05 am
As an owner of a beautiful German Shephard and an equally spiritied Mini-Schnauzer, I was really upset initially with Mr. Vick’s decisions. Then I thought that in some countries dogs are domesticated, farmed and eaten as food. Wow! Talk about terrible! Then I thought, what about the animals we in the U.S.A. domesticate, farm and eat. Who is standing up for the plight of the helpless chickens and cows…what about the pigs and turkeys? Yeah, yeah, I know what you are going to say…it was just a thought anyway.
13. Eat A D1ck V7ck H8taz
September 6th, 2007 at 3:37 am
LMAO @ these so called animal lover’s…y don’t u speak out against the hunter’s that kill deer, bearz, chinchillaz, and foxez to put on ur body????…y don’t u speak out against the people killin’ cowz, pigz, and chickens????…u know sum people keep them as petz 2…MAN!!!!…he killed dogz he killed dogz iz all u hear…wut about the damn dog catcher that killz stray dogz…aren’t stray dogz violent just like these born and bred fightin’ dogz??…i think this issue iz WAY OUT in left field and it’z all about a BIG MONEY BLACK CELEBRITY gettin’ hit up…i think it’z their payback for makin’ Paris Hilton and Martha Stewart goin’ 2 da big house…LMAOoOoOoooO!!!…i just think b4 people OUT Mike Vick they needa look at themselves and the thingz they do with/or 2 animals…i mean damn…what about the people who kill HORSES when they can no longer race in the Horse Races???…CONTRADICTORY ASS SOCIETY BOY I’LL TELL YA!!!…and yall needa stop havin’ ya kidz lookin’ 2 athletez and entertainerz az IDOLZ…these FOLK ain’t doin’ nothin’ but a JOB, gettin’ paid just like u and me, just so happenz that they’re on a NATIONAL STAGE!!!…who says wut’z politically correct???…A CONTRIDICTORY SOCIETY????…in the wordz of Kanye West…”HA HAAAAAAA!!! CAN’T TELL ME NOTHIN”…….NO DISRESPECT BUT MY THOUGHTZ