Daniella Monet Snags peta2 Award

Vegan Nickelodeon Star Sticks Up for Fish in Striking peta2 Ad

For Immediate Release:
December 20, 2013

Contact:
Shakira Croce 202-483-7382

Daniella Monet is downright proud of being vegan. In fact, earlier this year, the Nickelodeon star wore a mermaid costume and posed underwater for a stunning ad campaign titled “Try to Relate to Who’s on Your Plate” for peta2—PETA’s youth division—to remind people that fish feel pain just as all animals do. That’s one reason that Monet has won a 2013 Libby Award for Best peta2 Ad. “Libby” stands for “liberation,” as in animal liberation.

During the ad shoot, she sat down for an exclusive peta2 interview, in which she talked about people who say that they’re vegetarian—but still eat fish. “They forget that fish have feelings, too,” says Monet, who went vegetarian at age 5. “Fish aren’t veggies. Fish have feelings, and fish are trying to live and breathe.”

Scientific studies show that fish are intelligent, sensitive animals who experience pain and fear when they’re hooked or netted and pulled from the water. A recent issue of the journal Fish and Fisheries cited more than 500 research papers on fish intelligence that prove that fish are smart, can use tools, and have impressive long-term memories and sophisticated social structures. Also, a recent study found unsafe mercury levels in 84 percent of all fish. And according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, vegans are less prone to heart disease, cancer, obesity, and stroke than meat-eaters are.

Monet beat out some stiff competition, including The Summer Set, Forrest Kline of Hellogoodbye, and Matty Mullins of Memphis May Fire. She’s part of a long list of celebrities—including Lea Michele, Megan Park, Torrey DeVitto, Sarah Hyland, Kellan Lutz, Cody Simpson, and Pink—who have teamed up with peta2 to help animals.

Twenty-six Libby Awards will be given out this year, recognizing everything from the best cruelty-free cosmetics company to peta2’s favorite animal-friendly celebrities. Winners were chosen by peta2 based on several factors, including vote count, and each winner will receive a personalized certificate and yearlong bragging rights.

For more information about the winners, please visit peta2.com/Libbys.