Melvin B. Miller
Editor & Publisher

With friends like these…!

Whenever there are cockfights, dogfights, bullfights or sport hunting and fishing, the animal kingdom suffers. These events attract their special audiences and the rest of the population pays little attention. But when a celebrity is accused of mistreating dogs, then everyone notices.

Michael Vick, the star quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons, has been charged with animal abuse because of his involvement with fighting dogs and he faces a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000. But that is not all he stands to lose.

In 2004, Vick signed a 10-year, $130 million contract to play for the Falcons, which legal experts say the team has the right to terminate, costing Vick more than $70 million over the next seven years. Nike has also terminated his valuable endorsement deal, and several other companies have suspended similar contracts with Vick.

Unfortunately, the public will never know for certain the extent of Vick’s involvement in the nefarious affairs of Bad Newz Kennels. That is because he has chosen to plead guilty to a less serious offense rather than risk a trial. He was forced to plead because his co-defendants Quanis L. Phillips, Purnell A. Peace and Tony Taylor have all accepted plea deals for lighter sentences.

According to reports, the co-defendants have placed the primary responsibility for the crimes on Vick. There is no way that he could overcome their testimony. In order to receive a mild censure from the court, the co-defendants would be expected to be cooperative, dramatic and expansive in their testimony about Vick’s deeds.

With a $37 million signing bonus and an annual income in excess of $13 million, it is highly unlikely that Vick was overly involved in the affairs of Bad Newz Kennels. His early statement claimed that he provided the capital to set up his homeboys in business. If so, his so-called friends certainly did not demonstrate any loyalty, as they shifted all the blame in the affair in order to save their own hides.
When an African American is successful, there is an incessant demand to “give back.” The Vick affair shows that there is also a great danger in remaining too involved with homeboys who have not yet emerged from the difficulties of the old neighborhood. What a tragic loss of such substantial financial resources.

A foreign language?

English is the primary language of instruction in public schools in Massachusetts. In order to teach math, science, history, social studies or other subjects, it is necessary for teachers to have mastered English.

As obvious as this requirement might be, a majority of black applicants for teaching jobs fail the state licensing test in writing English. In 2005-2006, only 46 percent of blacks aspiring to become teachers passed the writing portion of the communication and literary skills test. Latinos performed slightly better, with 48 percent passing.

The consequence of these failures is that it is becoming more difficult to achieve racial diversity in the classroom. In 2005-2006, 77 percent of white applicants passed the writing test. Rules established by the 1993 Education Reform Act required teacher licensing tests to begin in 1998. At the time, the failure rate for blacks on the writing test was an astronomical 76 percent.

There has been some protest that the tests are not racially sensitive. That is absolute nonsense. How can anyone assert that it is unreasonable to require prospective teachers to have mastered their mother tongue? One of the major tasks of college is for students to develop a satisfactory expository style. That is one of the qualifications for joining the company of the well-educated.

Many children in public schools come from families that do not speak standard English at home. It is important for teachers to be able to correct their students’ English even while they are learning other subjects. There must be no softening of the standards.

“Who let the dawgs out?”