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In honor of Ben Franklin’s birthday, lettuce-clothed PETA activists braved the cold yesterday afternoon to spread the word about animal cruelty. Dressed in nothing but iceberg lettuce, a bit of trim and a stretchy waistband, local Lettuce Lady Nicole Mathews passed out faux-turkey sandwiches, talked to tourists and answered bewildered Franklin Institute attendants in 30 degree cold. All, of course, prompting the perfectly reasonable question, “whaaaa?”
It turns out our city’s great historical mascot (in addition to being born yesterday) was an ardent turkey advocate. He was one of few early Americans who advocated that the turkey be made our national animal, finding the bald eagle ultimately “a Bird of bad moral Character.” He had numerous encounters with the bird in his life, including an incident with “turkey-fries” that lead up to his famous electricity experiment. And, though probably not a strict vegetarian, he was known to be strongly opposed to animal cruelty and tended to keep a lid on his animal intake in later years.
More scantily-clad women after the jump...
The Lettuce Ladies (founded by long-time PETA member Pamela Anderson) thus seized on the celebration of this notable poultry proponent to raise awareness of turkey cruelty, introduce Philadelphians to tasty turkey substitutes, educate them on transitioning to a vegetarian life, and promote their brand spanking new website.
In Nicole’s own words:
If Ben were alive today, we believe that he would be brokenhearted to see the abuses endured by the same birds whom he sought to honor. With so many delicious meat alternatives available, there's never been a better time to go vegetarian.
Now true, Ben probably wrecked a drumstick or two on occasion. And the faux-turkey passed around in his honor probably didn’t exist back in the 1600s. But still, passing out vegan sandwiches in a lettuce bra in the middle of winter? That’s some dedication right there.
Enjoy the photos from the event here and on the LL’s homepage. It’s what Ben would do.
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