“We trust that Nike does not want to be associated with any celebrity who is linked to this odious form of animal cruelty," wrote Wayne Pacelle, the CEO of the Humane Society, in a letter to the footwear giant.

The clock appeared to be ticking and it appeared that it was just a matter of time before Nike would pull the plug. After all, AirTran Airways cut ties with Vick in early June. Madison Avenue is known for a lot of things, but going against the tide of public opinion is not one of them. And neither is integrity and guts.

Nike immediately responded to the Humane Society’s “suggestion” by saying they would stick with Vick. Nike spokesman Dean Stoyer actually said that the company was standing behind him and that he deserved the benefit of the doubt.

“There is no change in the status of the agreement between Nike and football player Michael Vick," Stoyer said. "He is rightfully presumed innocent and afforded the same due process as any citizen, rather than be tried in the court of public opinion. Nike will continue to monitor the situation, but has nothing further to say at this time."

Nike is not saying it will stay linked to Vick forever, but it is not going to be pushed into any knee-jerk reaction.

That is exactly what Vick deserves. It may make the Humane Society and PETA call for a boycott of Nike and any other organization that decides to stand by Vick, but Nike is doing the right thing. You don’t abandon your associates in their time of need because they may be involved in some disgusting and criminal behavior.

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He deserves the full protection of the law and he is innocent until proven guilty. It’s easy to rush to judgment and label Vick as a criminal who relishes seeing animals tear each other apart. But it’s not right. Just ask Seligmann, Finnerty and Evans, who were labeled as rapists a little more than a year ago. It appeared that their futures were ruined and that jail was beckoning. Then the truth came out and they were finally absolved of the charges.

It may be unpopular to swim against the tide especially when the water is starting to turn red. But that’s just what Nike is doing by courageously supporting Vick.

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