Enes Kanter ‘Thinks Vegan’ in New Year PETA Campaign

For Immediate Release:
January 4, 2021

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

Wielding a head of lettuce like a basketball and looking fresh in a suit made entirely of leafy greens, Portland Trail Blazers center Enes Kanter stars in a series of new vegan ads for PETA that urge people to “Turn Over a New Leaf” in the new year by giving going vegan a shot.

In an accompanying video spot, Kanter shares how researching the meat and dairy industries during quarantine in the NBA “bubble” at the beginning of last season caused him to rethink his diet: “[T]he more I read and the more I watched and learned and educated myself, my heart was just shattering,” he says. “That was the first time I decided we need change, and change cannot wait anymore.”

Each person who goes vegan saves nearly 200 animals every year; reduces their risk of suffering from heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and cancer; and helps prevent future pandemics. SARS, swine flu, bird flu, and COVID-19 all stemmed from confining and killing animals for food.

“As an athlete, if I can do this, you can do this, too,” Kanter promises.

Kanter is part of a growing list of athletes and other celebrities—including Cam Newton, Tyrann Mathieu, Le’Veon Bell, Devin Funchess, Lonnie Walker, Alex Morgan, and Elena Delle Donne—who’ve teamed up with PETA to promote kindness to animals.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat” and which opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview—offers a free vegan starter kit (available here) full of recipes, tips, and more. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.