Group Suggests Name Change to Revitalize Neighborhood
For Immediate Release:
March 29, 2011
Contact:
Ashley Gonzalez 202-483-7382
San Francisco - The city of San Francisco hopes to revitalize the ailing Tenderloin district by enticing Twitter and other businesses to set up shop—but PETA has another suggestion: Do away with the old slaughterhouse-evoking moniker and rename the neighborhood the "Tempeh District." In a letter sent to Mayor Edwin M. Lee this morning, PETA points out that the name change would attract progressive companies and prospective residents by showing them that the neighborhood is ready for a fresh start and a new image.
"The 'Tenderloin' is an outdated name that echoes the violence and cruelty of the meat industry," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "San Francisco is home to some of the best vegan cuisine in the world, and its neighborhoods should reflect the city's commitment to compassion and progress."
For more information, please visit PETA.org.
PETA's letter to Mayor Lee follows.
March 29, 2011
The Honorable Edwin M. Lee
Mayor of San Francisco
Dear Mayor Lee,
I am writing on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our more than 2 million members and supporters, including thousands in the Bay Area, with an idea that could help revitalize the struggling Tenderloin district: rename it the "Tempeh District." By discarding an outdated moniker that evokes the horrors of the meat trade, you'll be sending a strong message to progressive businesses and health-conscious residents that this neighborhood is ready for a fresh start.
Tempeh, a protein-packed food made from soybeans, is a healthy, cruelty-free meat substitute. In contrast, tenderloin comes from real suffering. In today's intensive meat production industry, piglets have their tails and testicles cut off without being given any painkillers and breeding sows are confined for life to metal crates so small they can't even turn around or take two steps. Cattle are burned with hot irons, their horns are cut or burned off, and males are castrated—all without painkillers.
It's true that the Tenderloin echoes vice and corruption and that slaughterhouses are constantly found to be in violation of the law and more. But now's the perfect time to put the city's past in the deep freeze. San Francisco is now renowned for some of the best vegan cuisine in the world, and the city deserves a neighborhood named after a delicious cruelty-free food instead of the flesh of an abused animal. If Tempeh doesn't excite you, how about Granola Flats or Seitan's Lair? You could even run a contest to choose a veggie moniker.
Sincerely yours,
Tracy Reiman
Executive Vice President