Lawyers Go to the Dogs for Public Service Project

Cars driving by a park in East Oakland, California, last Saturday saw a strange sight: more than 100 pit bulls peacefully waiting in line for vaccinations, with owners and dogs queued way down the street while numerous folks helped guide them through the process. The gawkers probably would have been even more surprised to learn that 16 of the volunteers were lawyers belonging to the American Bar Association’s Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section (TIPS). Most shocking of all, the attorneys, who were in town for a conference, weren’t there to sue; they were there to help the dogs and their owners.

The Celebrate Your Pit Bull shot fair was sponsored by Bad Rap, a progressive pit bull rescue group. Not only do they sponsor shot fairs and adopt out dogs, they also offer free training classes for pit bull type dogs and their owners in Berkeley every Sunday. Bad Rap is all about responsible ownership and restoring the image of American Pit Bull Terriers. And let’s face it: Because of their popularity and some reckless owners, the dogs need help. They are the type of dogs most frequently killed in shelters throughout the U.S., in large part because of the negative hype.

The need in East Oakland was palpable in these hard economic times. The area had been rocked by foreclosures. Despite the downturn in the economy, the love that folks had for their dogs was evident. Some of the pet owners couldn’t afford leashes or collars so they walked their dogs to the event on clotheslines, belts, towels, and chains. The dogs that needed more proper accoutrements were given them gratis. The first 40 dogs through the hour-and-a-half queue also received a free microchip. Others were just given the standard rabies and distemper shots. Folks could also receive a voucher to have their dog spayed or neutered for free. Some people drove for miles just to get the free sterilization voucher for their pit bull. 

For me, the event was the highlight of the ABA’s annual conference and reinforced why I’m proud to be a member of ABA TIPS. Getting out in the neighborhood and doing some tangible good with other attorneys was cathartic. What a wonderful experience: holding puppies, talking to a young boy whose pit-bull puppy was dressed up in a little pink skirt, and petting some handsome dogs whose hand-tooled harnesses must have taken hours (if not days) to craft.

Best Friends Animal Society wanted to thank all the “courageous” attorneys who participated, so all the ABA volunteers received T-shirts sporting a picture of Oliver, one of Michael Vick’s ex-dogs, and the slogan “Pit Bulls: Saving America’s Dog.” On the back, the tees encourage folks to adopt pit and pit mixes from shelters and to battle breed discrimination.  

It’s only appropriate that the ABA participated in this worthy project. Who better to combat breed discrimination than the American Bar Association? The ABA has been on the forefront for years, battling every kind of discrimination. The American Bar Association’s motto is “Defending Liberty and Pursuing Justice.” To achieve justice, profiling of all kinds — including canine profiling — must become a thing of the past.

Indeed, at the event, a television reporter who showed up to portray the dogs in a negative light asked the veterinarian why there were so many media reports about these dogs going bad. The African American vet countered, “Why do you think there is still racism in America?” The reporter was dumbfounded.

Given the discrimination surrounding pit bulls today, the owners and dogs have a right to be blue. In Denver, pit bulls are being rounded up and killed in droves. Justice will be achieved when dogs have loving homes and responsible owners have the liberty to care for and love their companions, no matter what their appearance.

Photo Credit:  Akira Heshiki, ABA TIPS Lawyer's In Public Service Committee