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The true story of how one greyhound sparked a movement to close the worst dog track in the world and finally found his forever home with greyhound advocates. We once met a dog that changed the world. His name was Brooklyn. It's hard to imagine that a spotted dog would become the inspiration for a worldwide fight; that the campaign would be successful, and that after a decade of suffering, he would come home to us. And yet it happened. In fact, the thirteen short years that Brooklyn spent on this earth would turn out to be one of the most consequential periods in history for greyhounds, and for the broader debate on non-human animal rights. The life of this one dog signaled not only the end of greyhound racing in the United States, but also the emergence of the first successful movement to outlaw an animal abuse industry that was powerful, culturally resonant, and economically significant. This history is based on the memories and reflections of Christine Dorchak and Carey Theil and describes twenty years of working together to help greyhounds. The two of us grew up more than a decade apart, on alternate coasts, one raised very traditionally and the other quite liberally, one an animal loving “Jersey Girl” turned lawyer, the other a poet and chess master turned political strategist. This Yin and Yang turned out to be a curious balance of opposites that is perhaps the reason that the organization survived and then succeeded against very great odds. Brooklyn Goes Home is the story of the rise and fall of commercial greyhound racing in the United States and an account of how our small non-profit emerged from to make an impact. It is also a remembrance of three glorious years spent with a magical dog. We hope that readers will find inspiration in our chronicle, and perhaps discover new paths to making positive change in the world.

Winner: North American Society for Sport History Book AwardIn the 1970s sitcom The Odd Couple, Felix and Oscar argue over a racing greyhound that Oscar won in a bet. Animal lover Felix wants to keep the dog as a pet; gambling enthusiast Oscar wants to race it. This dilemma fairly reflects America's attitude toward greyhound racing.This book, the first cultural history of greyhound racing in America, charts the sport's meteoric rise—and equally meteoric decline—against the backdrop of changes in American culture during the last century. Gwyneth Anne Thayer takes us from its origins in “coursing” in England, through its postwar heyday, and up to its current state of near-extinction. Her entertaining account offers fresh insight into the development of American sport and leisure, the rise of animal advocacy, and the unique place that dogs hold in American life.Thayer describes greyhound racing's dynamic growth in the 1920s in places like Saint Louis, Chicago, and New Orleans, then explores its phenomenal popularity in Florida, where promoters exploited its remote association with the upper class and helped foster a celebrity culture around it. By the end of the century media reports of alleged animal cruelty had surfaced as well as competition from other gaming pursuits such as state lotteries and Indian casinos. Greyhound racing became so suspect that even Homer Simpson derided it.In exploring the socioeconomic, political, and ideological factors that fueled the rise and fall of dog racing in America, Thayer has consulted participants and critics alike in order to present both sides of a contentious debate. She examines not only the impact of animal protectionists, but also suspected underworld ties, longstanding tensions between dogmen and track owners over racing contracts, and the evolving relationship between consumerism and dogs. She captures the sport's glory days in dozens of photographs that recall its coursing past or show celebrities like Frank Sinatra and Babe Ruth with winning racing hounds. Thayer also records the growth of the adoption movement that rescues ex-racers from possible euthanasia.Today there are fewer than half as many greyhound tracks, in half as many states, as there were 10 years ago-and half of them are in Florida. Thayer's in-depth, meticulously balanced account is an intriguing look at this singular activity and will teach readers as much about American cultural behavior as about racing greyhounds.