By Dr. Boyce Watkins, PhD on Jul 6th 2010 11:37AM
Filed under: Football
There are reports now that the Philadelphia Eagles may slice
Michael Vick from their roster. I am not sure how accurate these anonymous reports happen to be, but even
Stevie Wonder can see that there are likely some Eagles execs who want Vick out of Dodge. It's a sad day when arguably the greatest athlete in the NFL is backing up a guy named
Kevin Kolb (yeah, I don't know much about him either) and that his team is still wondering if he is an asset or a liability.
I have defended Vick quite a bit, primarily due to the protection of his civil rights. The dog-fighting trial led to the kind of media lynching that typically occurs when a black athlete makes a legal mistake. In the case of someone being shot at
Michael Vick's birthday party, though, I have to seriously ask him what in the heck he was thinking.
On one hand, we know Michael Vick can't control the actions of individuals who attended his party. You can have security and screen all day if you want, but you are never completely sure what's going on underneath the surface. At the same time, given that NFL Commissioner
Roger Goodell warned Vick that his margin of error was very small, no such party should have occurred in the first place. When you've got $5.2 million in salary on the line, your "birthday bash" should consist of you and three of your favorite cousins kicking it on the couch with the Play Station controller. Vick can go to parties hosted by others, but when his name is on the bash, he's the one that takes the heat.
At this point, I still think that Michael Vick's side of the story should be heard. All the while, Vick is unlike other athletes who haven't spent time in prison. He is the guy who was nearly banned for life and allowed back in to the league on a hope and a prayer. If I were an executive with the Eagles, he'd be off my roster for good. There's no excuse for the man who keeps making excuses, yet all the while, is simply not the player he used to be.
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Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here. 
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Comments: (8)
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By: sagaa on 7/06/2010 12:13PM
I find that many white girls are trying to find black guys as their matches on
_____M i x e d M a t c h i n g . C o m____. White girls are interested in black guys, then how about the black girls? I do prefer to find a black man as my boy friend.
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By: BG on 7/06/2010 4:14PM
This is why men are running away from you.
What has your problem got to do with this headline?
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By: eaglelion on 7/06/2010 12:58PM
Greetings –
I love Michael Vick…
The current status of Vick made the party choice an unwise decision.
It is in his best interest socially to maintain a low profile under the radar with limited exposure. He did NOT do that relative to his most recent poor judgment.
OJ Simpson, after his acquittal, did NOT maintain a low profile. Notice his fate.
We can have fun socially and enjoy life without “bright lights” engagement.
His career was fragile before the party and now it is even more fragile. The party was not worth
what may be the “fallout” from getting his “groove on.”
We all do foolish things and must deal with the consequences.
May Vick seek GOD for the help that he needs….
May the Lord help us all.
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By: Bucmell on 7/06/2010 2:44PM
It appears so far in this recent Incident, That M.V. Did nothing wrong. He had a Birthday Party... For which the man who got shot. WAS NOT INVITED. 1 minute or 1 hour (I don't care) he left in advance! Yaza, Have you never needed forgiveness, and was it granted? How long do you grind an axe anyway? Better to remain silent than open your mouth and remove all doubt, of how small a human you can be.
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By: shay on 7/06/2010 9:42PM
i can't help but notice that this nearly identical story was posted twice in 24 hours, with a couple small changes - one being a comment about kolb. following mention of his name, the first article goes on to say "..(my thoughts match your own).."
after a previous mention that he received "media lynching" after the dog fight incident, i am hoping that you truly meant what was rewritten in the second posting of the article, and not because he's a white athlete. if so - shame on you dr. boyce. although i agree that racism still exists in today's world, and that civil rights should be upheld to the fullest, comments such as these are setting back the black community and setting a bad example. blacks can also be guilty of racist remarks against others, and seeing something like this angers me at the thought that this comment could be encouraging other members of the black community to think racistly against whites (or any other race for that matter). you said yourself, dr. boyce, that vick has been acting out in "DUMB BEHAVIOR." before chalking up the media firestorm from the dog fight case to his being black, did you ever stop and think that maybe it was because it is DISGUSTIN, TORTUOUS, and INHUMANE???? and for those of you on his side regarding his most recent slip up: how about the fact that he VIOLATED PAROLE by being in the presence of other convicted criminals, like family members who were present at the party???
defending civil rights when it's warranted is one thing. but defending a man who clearly doesn't know where to draw the line when it comes to crossing that line are another.
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By: zackhary londy on 7/07/2010 7:26AM
i guess you forgot what they did to Ali back in the 60's when he refused to enter the military draft.. yes mike made a mistake,but he paid for it,but when ever i hear a black person say what you said, it makes me sick, tell me this, when was the last time a white player was banned from any big name sport because of the actions of other's? why can't this man be allowed to make a living?
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By: ADMR on 7/07/2010 11:25PM
WOW...Lots Of Trouble for them Indeed
Mike NEEDS To Humble Himself or GOD will continue to do It
He himself stated He Had No Need For God Hence his Bad Luck.
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By: ADRIAN HARRIS OF SOUTH GEORGIA GO!! GRAMBLING STATE UNIVERSITY!!! GO WORLD CLASS DRIVE!!!!! GO STUDENT BODY !!!! GO!!! on 7/08/2010 2:36AM
HAIL!!! MACULINE SALUTATIONS MASTER!!! HAIL!!! TO YOU STAR MAKER!!! HAIL!!! SEPIA PEOPLE OF THE MELANIN SEPIA SPECTRUM!!!! MY COMMENT; IN MY LATE TEENS I OF COURSE WAS A RAVID FAN OF FOOTBALL AND "HOWARD COSELL" AND HIS MERRY BAND OF PROGNOSTICATORS WERE IN THEIR USUAL FOOTBALL ORAL MAGICS; WHEN I HEARD A FOMER PLAYER(ALL PRO-FUTURE HALLOF FAMER) TURNED PROGNOSTICATOR AND HIS COHERT DESCIBE WHAT A SUCCESSFUL PRO IS. WHAT EXACTLY DOES IT TAKE. THEY SAID THAT THERE WERE 7 MAIN ATTRIBUTES THAT MAKES A SUCCESSFUL NFL PLAYER. THESE ARE THEY IN THE ORDER THAT I REMEMBER . 1)LEADERSHIP, 2)WORK EHTIC, 3)RESOLVE, 4)TOUGHNESS, 5)MATURITY, 6)TEAMWORK, 7)CHARACTER. SO FROM THE REPORTS ON "MICHEAL VICK" ONE CAN LOOK AND SEE WHAT IS WRONG WITH "MICHEAL VICK". HE HAD ALL 7 ONCE. BUT NOT NOW. BUT ITS "MICHEAL VICKS" LIFE AND "THE BILL OF RIGHTS" SAY IN THIS CASE THE HELL WITH US. BUT THE BROTHER USED TOBCOULD PLAY. MAYBE THE BLACK MAN CAN GET IT TOGETHER. ABBA CAN DO IT. BYE SEPIA FAITHFUL. GET PLENTY OF WATER AND NOURSHING FOOD AND REST. HEY I GOT THE 7 WHAT ABOUT Y'ALL. OF COURSE I DID PLAY FOOTBALL, BUT WHO SAID YOU HAD TO BE AN ATHLETE TO HAVE THESE WONDERFUL TRAITS. DON'T LET US HAVE IT ALL. LET WE SAY DOWN HERE IN THE "PIT", GET YOU SOME TO... LOVE YOU!! BYE!!!
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