Andrea Rosebrock 
You’re probably just as disturbed as we are by the felony dogfighting charges against NFL quarterback Michael Vick. We’re proud to bring you an urgent action alert today from our partner Working Assets and ActForChange.com to urge Nike to drop their lucrative sponsorship of Michael Vick immediately. Thank you for caring and acting today!
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Tell Nike: Cancel Michael Vick’s Endorsement Contract
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was indicted last week on felony charges of dog fighting. Contained in the indictment are even more disturbing allegations: that Vick himself tortured and killed several animals who were wounded or could not fight.
When authorities raided Vick’s Virginia house they found, among other things, 66 dogs (mostly pit bulls), a dog-fighting pit, bloodstained carpets and equipment commonly associated with dogfighting. Yet despite this evidence, Nike has not yet canceled their multimillion-dollar endorsement deal with Vick. This is simply wrong — and needs to change right away.
Click here to tell Nike: cancel Michael Vick’s endorsement contract.
Nike has also said it has no plans to pull merchandise bearing Vick’s name from store shelves. In contrast, even the owner of Vick’s football team, the Atlanta Falcons, has seen fit to suspend him from the NFL owing to the sickening nature of the charges against him
We agree with Nike, of course, that Mr. Vick is entitled to his constitutional rights of due process under the law. However, there’s no constitutional guarantee of a lucrative endorsement deal. Nike should be thinking long and hard right now; your messages will let them know that the American public does NOT approve of the vicious and bloodthirsty practice of dogfighting.
Cruel and inhumane activities such as dogfighting will continue unabated unless powerfully rebuked from all sectors of our society. Nike needs to step up and play their part, so please take action today.
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To read the entire 19 page indictment, download it HERE
For more background and information as wll as all the up to date stories, please see – Michael Vick and Dogfighting
[...] Tell Nike – Cancel Michael Vick’s Endorsement Contract!! [...]
I don’t usually follow the news, but I was reading the newspaper on my lunch break and came across this story along with all of the shocking details. I was so disturbed that I nearly vomited. While I do have some lengthly thoughts on the story, I’d like to say that Nike should pull Vicks’s endorsed shoes off the shelves and donate them to the Humane Society as chew toys for the dogs. That would be awesome. But I guess we’ll only see that happen when pigs fly over a frozen hell.
-Angela
I don’t usually follow the news, but I was reading the newspaper on my lunch break and came across this story along with all of the shocking details. I was so disturbed that I nearly vomited. While I do have some lengthly thoughts on the story, I’d like to say that Nike should pull Vicks’s endorsed shoes off the shelves and donate them to the Humane Society as chew toys for the dogs. That would be awesome. But I guess we’ll only see that happen when pigs fly over a frozen hell.
-Angela
I don’t usually follow the news, but I was reading the newspaper on my lunch break and came across this story along with all of the shocking details. I was so disturbed that I nearly vomited. While I do have some lengthly thoughts on the story, I’d like to say that Nike should pull Vicks’s endorsed shoes off the shelves and donate them to the Humane Society as chew toys for the dogs. That would be awesome. But I guess we’ll only see that happen when pigs fly over a frozen hell.
-Angela
I don’t usually follow the news, but I was reading the newspaper on my lunch break and came across this story along with all of the shocking details. I was so disturbed that I nearly vomited. While I do have some lengthly thoughts on the story, I’d like to say that Nike should pull Vicks’s endorsed shoes off the shelves and donate them to the Humane Society as chew toys for the dogs. That would be awesome. But I guess we’ll only see that happen when pigs fly over a frozen hell.
-Angela
I don’t usually follow the news, but I was reading the newspaper on my lunch break and came across this story along with all of the shocking details. I was so disturbed that I nearly vomited. While I do have some lengthly thoughts on the story, I’d like to say that Nike should pull Vicks’s endorsed shoes off the shelves and donate them to the Humane Society as chew toys for the dogs. That would be awesome. But I guess we’ll only see that happen when pigs fly over a frozen hell.
-Angela
Hi,
This Press Release is in memory of the animals tortured and slaughtered in dog fighting. As personally satisfying as it would be to spay and neuter Michael Vick (with no anesthesia), we prefer to teach people how animals SHOULD BE TREATED, and what a blessing they are in our lives. Thanks for reading it and passing it on. ~ Nancy Cronk at http://www.Animal Chaplains.com.
Press Release August 22, 2007
“Animal Chaplains To Honor and Bless All Creatures on World Animal Day”
~ from the Interfaith Association of Animal Clergy
While Americans have watched in horror as celebrity athlete Michael Vick admits being a willling participant in one of the cruelest, most horrific crimes against animals ever committed, America needs an emotional healing. That day is World Animal Day.
In what will look like a scene from the popular family movie, “Evan Almighty”, scores of Animal Chaplains around the world will bless hundreds, perhaps thousands of animals in many different settings on October 4th 2007. At a pet cemetery on the east coast, to a city park in the desert, to a sandy beach on the west coast, they will walk in on a leash, fly in on a harness, and slither in their cages. Barking, mewing, bleating, mooing, whinnying and purring will join human voices in hymns of praise and worship. World Animal Day is a day dedicated to honoring, blessing, and protecting animals all over the world.
World Animal Day was founded at an ecologist’s convention in Florence, Italy in 1931 as a way of highlighting the plight of endangered species. October 4th was chosen as World Animal Day because it is also the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, a Catholic Church holiday which is often celebrated with an annual “blessing of the pets”. Since then, it has grown to encompass all kinds of animal life and has been widely celebrated around the world. Churches and synagogues in many faiths traditions have adopted “Pet Blessing Day” or “World Animal Day” in increasing numbers every year.
The Interfaith Association of Animal Chaplains prepares for World Animal Day by referring its members and visitors to the official World Animal Day website. The site provides ideas and resources to individuals, families, community groups and congregations everywhere. People can post their pledge for volunteering at a World Animal Day event. In addition to blessing pets, volunteers will work at animal shelters, zoos, rescues, and other nonprofit organizations. Dogs will be walked, cats will be brushed, horses will be groomed, and fish will benefit from freshly cleaned tanks. Donations will be given to animal welfare agencies, and pets will be adopted. School children will collect pet food to be donated to charities, and bake sales and car washes will be held as fundraising events. Veterinary clinics will hold free spay and neuter days, or may offer to vaccinate pets at no charge. All over the world, on the very same day, the well-being of animals will be on the minds of millions of people.
Interfaith Chaplain Nancy Cronk feels a day honoring animals is very important at a time when the headlines speak of animal cruelty such as athlete Michael Vick’s alleged ties to illegal dog fighting. Animal Chaplains would like everyone to know that every major faith endorses the responsible stewardship of the earth and all of its creatures. “Deliberate harming of animals is in direct opposition to teachings in all of the major world faiths. Caring for animals is our global spiritual responsibility. If we can teach this ethic to all of our children, animal abuse and suffering will someday become a distant memory”.
To find out how to get involved on World Animal Day, go to http://www.WorldAnimalDay.org.uk. To find out more about Animal Chaplains, go to http://www.AnimalChaplains.com.
(This article may be reprinted.)
Nancy J. Cronk
Founder, Chair and Chaplain
Interfaith Association of Animal Chaplains
http://www.AnimalChaplains.com
Email: AnimalClergy@aol.com