邁克爾·維克的康復治療正在進行

邁克爾·維克的康復治療正在進行

The NFL recently announced that Michael Vick will be one of the captains in the 2020 Pro Bowl in January.

美國國家橄欖球聯(lián)盟(NFL)最近宣布，邁克爾·維克將成為明年1月舉行的2020年職業(yè)橄欖球大賽的隊長之一。

Former quarterback Michael Vick watches an NFL game in December 2019. (Photo: Bob Levey/Getty Images)

During his 13-year career, the quarterback spent six seasons with the Atlanta Falcons and five with the Philadelphia Eagles before spending a year each with the New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

在他13年的職業(yè)生涯中，這位四分衛(wèi)在亞特蘭大獵鷹隊待了6個賽季，在費城老鷹隊待了5個賽季，之后分別在紐約噴氣機隊和匹茲堡鋼人隊待了一年。

But for many people, Vick will always be known more for his involvement in a dogfighting ring than for his football skills.

但對許多人來說，維克更出名的是他參與斗狗，而不是他的足球技術(shù)。

Vick and his supporters say that he has changed and has since worked to stop dogfighting and get the Animal Fighting Spectator Prohibition Act passed in Congress. Others are not so sure.

維克和他的支持者們說，維克已經(jīng)改變了，從那以后，他一直致力于制止斗狗，并在國會通過了《禁止斗狗觀眾法案》。其他人則不那么肯定。

Online petitions are demanding that Vick be removed as a Pro Bowl Legends captain. A Change.org petition has more than 145,000 signatures and another on AnimalVictory.org has more than 229,000.

網(wǎng)上的請愿書要求取消維克作為職業(yè)碗傳奇隊長的身份。請愿網(wǎng)站Change.org上有超過145,000個簽名，而在AnimalVictory.org上有超過229,000個簽名。

Both petitions argue that the NFL should not honor a known animal abuser and instead should give the position to someone more worthy.

兩份請愿書都認為，NFL不應(yīng)該授予已知的虐待動物者榮譽，而是應(yīng)該把這個職位給更有價值的人。

The case against Vick

針對維克的案子

Protesters hold signs outside Surry County Circuit Court after Vick plead guilty on two felony counts in November 2008 in Sussex, Virginia. (Photo: Geoff Burke/Getty Images)

Vick’s name may be synonymous with animal cruelty, but the quarterback never actually served time for that crime. Charges of animal cruelty were dropped as part of a plea bargain, and he was convicted of bankrolling a dogfighting conspiracy. He was sentenced to 23 months in prison.

維克的名字可能是虐待動物的同義詞，但這位四分衛(wèi)實際上從未因那項罪行而服刑。作為認罪協(xié)議的一部分，虐待動物的指控被撤銷，他被判為一起斗狗陰謀提供資金。他被判處23個月監(jiān)禁。

Ten of the more adoptable canines from Vick’s dogfighting ring went to BAD RAP, an animal rescue group devoted to rehabilitating pit bulls, and in 2007, Donna Reynolds, co-founder of the organization, went to Virginia to evaluate those dogs. She later shared details of the dogs’ abuse on her blog, noting that she wears “some pretty thick skin” but “can’t shake” what she learned.

維克的斗狗圈中有10只更容易被收養(yǎng)的狗被“BAD RAP”收養(yǎng)，這是一個致力于幫助比特犬康復的動物救援組織。2007年，該組織的聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人唐娜·雷諾茲前往弗吉尼亞州對這些狗進行評估。后來，她在自己的博客上分享了被狗虐待的細節(jié)，指出她“臉皮很厚”，但“無法擺脫”所學到的東西。

“The rescuer in me keeps trying to think of a way to go back in time and somehow stop this torture,” she wrote.

她寫道:“我內(nèi)心深處的拯救者一直在努力想辦法回到過去，以某種方式停止這種折磨。”

"What Michael Vick did was not just dogfighting," Marthina McClay, who adopted one of the Vick dogs, told The San Francisco Chronicle. "It went so far beyond that, and most people who defend him are uninformed."

“邁克爾·維克所做的不僅僅是斗狗，”馬蒂娜·麥克雷在接受《舊金山紀事報》采訪時表示。“事情遠不止于此，大多數(shù)為他辯護的人都不知情。”

After failing a polygraph, Vick admitted to killing dogs that wouldn’t fight or didn’t perform well, but he never faced animal cruelty charges and many of critics are angry about it. It’s part of the reason why Vick continues to encounter protesters and why people still raise the question of “If he hadn’t gotten caught, would he still be killing dogs?”

在測謊失敗后，維克承認殺死了那些不會打架或表現(xiàn)不佳的狗，但他從未面臨虐待動物的指控，許多批評人士對此感到憤怒。這也是維克不斷遭遇抗議者的部分原因，也是為什么人們?nèi)匀粫岢鲞@樣的問題:“如果他沒有被抓住，他還會殺狗嗎?”

"It worked out nicely for Vick that he never faced his animal abuse charges in court,” Reynolds said. “That meant football fans were spared the most disturbing details of his tortures and could go back to their Sunday night ritual with barely a hiccup."

“維克在法庭上從未面臨虐待動物的指控，這對他來說很好，”雷諾茲說。“這意味著球迷們不必再為那些折磨他的最令人不安的細節(jié)操心了，他們可以毫不費力地回到周日晚上的儀式上。”

Has Vick really changed?

維克真的變了嗎?

John Garcia of Best Friends Animal Society sits with a rehabilitated Michael Vick dog named Georgia. (Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

Vick is well aware that while some people may have forgiven him, they certainly haven’t forgotten why he’s such a controversial figure.

維克很清楚，雖然有些人可能已經(jīng)原諒了他，但他們肯定沒有忘記為什么他是一個如此有爭議的人物。

“The best thing to do was make amends for what I did. I can’t take it back,” Vick told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in August 2016. “The only thing I can do is influence the masses of kids from going down the same road I went down. That’s why I work with the Humane Society and affecting a lot of kids’ lives and saving a lot of animals. We’ve had lot of a progress. We’ve been able to change some laws and do some great things that I’m very proud of.”

“最好的辦法就是為我所做的一切做出補償。我無法收回，”維克在2016年8月接受《匹茲堡郵報》采訪時表示。“我唯一能做的就是影響孩子們，讓他們不要重蹈我的覆轍。這就是為什么我與動物保護協(xié)會合作，影響了很多孩子的生命，拯救了很多動物。我們已經(jīng)取得了很大進展。我們已經(jīng)能夠改變一些法律，做一些偉大的事情，我非常自豪。”

Since his release from prison, Vick worked to rebuild both his professional football career and his reputation. He since played on three NFL teams, finally retiring in February 2017. Vick has backed animal cruelty legislation and at one point was an active participant in the Humane Society’s anti-dogfighting campaign — the latter of which brought the animal-welfare organization so much negative attention that it addressed its affiliation with Vick in a series of frequently asked questions on its website. (The questions about Vick are no longer there but dogfighting questions remain.)

出獄后，維克努力重建自己的職業(yè)足球生涯和聲譽。他后來效力于三支NFL球隊，最終于2017年2月退役。維克支持虐待動物立法和一度積極參與人道協(xié)會anti-dogfighting運動——后者將動物福利組織如此多的負面關(guān)注,解決其歸屬與維克在一系列常見問題在其網(wǎng)站上。(關(guān)于維克的問題已經(jīng)不存在了，但關(guān)于斗狗的問題依然存在。)

While Vick's critics argue that he hasn't properly apologized and hasn't expressed believable remorse, others say he's a changed man who's trying to redefine himself. When Vick issued an apology after signing with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009, the New York Times had multiple writers weighed in on whether Vick was truly repentant.

盡管批評維克的人認為他沒有適當?shù)氐狼福矝]有表達出令人信服的懊悔，但也有人說他是一個試圖重新定義自己的人。當維克在2009年與費城老鷹隊簽約后發(fā)表道歉聲明時，《紐約時報》的多位作者都在討論維克是否真的后悔了。

Perhaps most surprisingly was the response from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which was somewhat supportive of Vick’s return to football.

也許最令人驚訝的是善待動物組織(PETA)對維克重返足球界的支持。

“As long as he’s throwing a football and not electrocuting a dog, PETA is pleased he is focused on his game,” PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange said in a statement.

PETA高級副總裁麗莎·蘭格在一份聲明中說:“只要它扔的是足球而不是電擊狗，PETA就很高興它專注于自己的比賽。”