Mike Vick Documentary Series Can Provide the Gift of Education

We knew Michael Vick, the great Virginia Tech Hokie who left us breathless by the strength of his arm and the burst of his legs.

We loved Michael Vick, the tantalizing Atlanta Falcon who exploded into the National Football League with style and grace.

We despised Michael Vick, the dogfighting punk who tortured animals for profit while watching over his crude Bad Newz Kennels business.

But what about Michael Vick, the television star attempting to rectify wrongs?

We will have the opportunity to watch, listen, and decide.

Vick will tell his story through a 10-part documentary series that will debut Feb. 2 on BET.

I’m sure there will be plenty of Vick supporters who applaud the quarterback for taking another step in the process of repairing his public image by not telling us how he was wrong, but for showing us how he was wrong.

On the other hand, I’m sure there will be plenty of Vick haters who don’t ever want to forgive him, and who will use his new TV series to drive a dagger further into his heart.

Vick will take you to Leavenworth, Kan. and the federal prison where he melted away while serving an 18-month sentence.

Vick will return to Surry County, Va. and the property where many of his dogfights took place.

Vick will show you where the losers were buried.

I suspect The Michael Vick Project could be raw enough to reopen the wounds of those who would rather just forget about Vick and his dirty deeds.

“At times, it’s hard to talk about it, but for the most part, if you talk about it and let it all out, it kind of helps put the demons to rest,” Vick told the Associated Press.

The demons won’t be put to rest in some stark corners of the public, but the series is necessary.

It’s necessary for Vick’s peace of mind, but it’s more necessary for the education of many.

Vick won’t make excuses for his part in the dogfighting ring, but he does offer some insight.

In the series Vick notes that he saw his first dogfight at the tender age of seven and that dogfighting was a part of black culture where he grew up.

“When you grow up in the inner cities, when you grow up in the urban neighborhoods, that’s pretty much what you get,” said Vick. “You don’t have opportunities to do certain things at your own leisure…you’re looking for some activity to get into.”

You be the judge of whether or not such explanations are plausible, but credit Vick for taking the step that most athletes never take. Vick, in his own way, is attempting to provide some substantive explanation as to why such horrific actions occur.

Don’t think for a second that he’s saying it was right.

“Why sacrifice so many animals and put them in vulnerable positions to be harmed and injured?” said Vick. “It was pointless.”

To me, this means more than the work Vick has done with the Humane Society, and is on par with the numerous speeches he gave at schools and churches.

It’s easy to sit in a press conference, cry for the camera, and say that you are sorry.

It takes courage to attempt to inform a population.

We don’t need the edges of Vick’s life to be sanded down. We need them to splinter; we need them to sting a little. We need to know why an individual can be so troubled and how he got there.

The meat of the documentary series will not resonate with young children, but it will shake the foundation of older viewers.

If we are lucky, Vick’s words and footage will teach us about a neglected piece of culture that lurks in the backwoods of America.

It will teach parents, and young adults soon to become parents, about some of the devilish temptations that prey on young ones with too much free time and too little guidance.

The themes and realities in the series will be too large for most kids to process, but that doesn’t mean kids can’t benefit from viewing the project. 

Sure, kids may only see puppies and an unfamiliar face speaking to them, but it is Vick’s face they need to see.

Pictures, facial expressions, and emotions are innate characteristics that children can capture.

They need to see the pain on Vick’s face.

They need to see the regret in Vick’s eyes.

They need to hear the sense of failure in Vick’s voice.

“This show can be a blueprint for kids,” said Vick. “I want to show that if they have a fall from grace, this is how they can turn it around. We want this to be a story of hope.”

Vick knows he will always have to face an angry contingent of hecklers and that, to some, nothing will ever be enough. We all know it.

But this isn’t a matter of whether you think Vick should remain in prison for the rest of his life or whether he has lost enough and deserves another opportunity in the NFL.

For this documentary, we are all on the same team. If you refuse to open your mind to this series, then you are simply choosing to be ignorant.

We don’t need Vick supporters and Vick bashers turning on the television set.

We need eager ears and intellectual minds.

Are we going to attempt to learn from a villain and prevent others from falling into the same trap, or are we merely going to condemn the next one and shuttle him or her into the jaws of public opinion?

Michael Vick isn’t a savior and he isn’t a role model.

But we don’t need him to be either.

We need him to be real.

As a society, we need him to offer us the opportunity to learn.

You can reach Teddy Mitrosilis at [e-mail].