The Gantt Report
By: Lucius Gantt
On the day of his crucifixion, Jesus Christ forgave the people that nailed him to the cross. Martin Luther King Junior forgave the people that beat him and jailed him for participating in non-violent civil rights protests and every day spouses, family members and friends forgive each other for our transgressions.
However, the devilish, atheist leadership of the organization called People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) plan to hate football player Michael Vick for life!
PETA, with encouragement from biased sports writers and broadcasters, plan to stage protests at NFL stadiums and games if Michael Vick is allowed to work in the professional football league.
Vick was charged with being involved in dog fighting and sentenced to about two years in federal prison. After serving part of his sentence under house arrest in Virginia, Vick will be free to resume his life in late July 2009.
America is a “free” country and anybody can protest almost any thing but Vick’s treatment by haters spreads way past professional sports.
Everybody in America that is Black has either been to jail, has a family member that has been locked up or a friend or neighbor that has been incarcerated. Many African Americans that have served time in jail find it extremely difficult to get a job anywhere. Government won’t hire offenders, schools won’t hire offenders, banks won’t hire offenders and many other employers use jail time to deny people opportunities to work.
If people in jail should be hated and shunned, I wouldn’t have a single hero because Jesus, MLK, Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, Angela Davis, Nelson Mandela, Andrew Young, Rap Brown, Huey Newton and many other great Black men and women have spent time behind bars.
If the National Football League refuses to allow Michael Vick and opportunity to seek a professional football job, the NFL would be the most hypocritical league in pro sports!
Michael Vick is not the only pro football player that has viewed or been involved in dog fighting and he’s not the only NFL person that has killed animals.
There is more than one person that has an NFL contract right now that has killed human beings in alcohol related car crashes. There are hordes of NFL players that have committed domestic violence. Every month there is an NFL player accused of drug use or substance abuse.
No disrespect but it seems to me it’s always cool for white folks and others to remember but the rules are different for us. PETA won’t forget Vick and dog fighting, Jews will never forget the Holocaust, Cubans won’t forget refugees and boat lifts, Hawaiians won’t forget Pearl Harbor and Indians won’t forget Little Big Horn but if we mention slavery, we’re playing the race card. We should forget the days of slavery, the Bermuda Triangle, Jim Crow and all of the oppression and exploitation we’ve suffered.
We should even forget how white racists and white colonialists routinely ordered dogs to attack women, children and babies, along with men, of color in almost every part of the world when Black people sought equal rights and justice.
If the NFL refuses to give Vick a chance to go back to work because of protests from misguided and opportunistic PETA members, Blacks that want fairness should boycott the NFL and every sponsor the National Football League has.
Don’t do it for Vick, do it for your family and friends that can’t get a job because they did jail time even if they were “over charged” and arrested on false charges.
