San Jose Youngster Wins PETA 'Cutest Vegan Kid' Award

SAN JOSE, CA —Eshiana Coleman wants a pig, goat and chickens in her back yard. And even though she and mother's San Jose home isn't equipped for such a farm, it probably would be the safest place for animals that get eaten.

"It's not on the table for us," her mother Anesha Monrreal said, canning the backyard farm idea.

The 11-year-old San Jose girl not only maintains a vegan diet as an athlete, she tells her story in various speaking engagements leading to a possible career in animal activism she told Patch as only an adamant adolescent would. She's even converted three other students from her former Parkview Elementary School.

Her passion, actions and conviction landed her an award to add to the trophy case she's achieved competing as an elite acrobatic gymnast. She's been chosen as the winner of the PETA Kids' 2019 Cutest Vegan Kid Contest, earning a special prize pack filled with goodies complete with a personalized trophy. There were 65 People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals contestants from around the country in a competition in its 12th year.

"Eshiana nabbed (the) PETA Kids' Cutest Vegan Kid title for proving that people of all ages can make the world a better place for animals,"PETA Senior Director Marta Holmberg said, following Tuesday's announcement. "Whether she's demonstrating how athletes can thrive on vegan meals or encouraging friends and family members to make kind choices, Eshiana sets a shining example of compassion for everyone to follow."

Eshiana went vegetarian at the age of 5, and two years later, she learned about some questionable practices in the egg and dairy industries she disagreed with. Since then, she's inspired her mother and her grandmother to go vegan. Her father, a body builder, was already vegan. She's even careful not to wear animal skins.

The young girl comes across smart and agile as a whip.

"It's exciting to show you can be vegan and an athlete," the budding sixth grader told Patch between her training sessions amounting to 20 hours a week as a "junior elite" member of an ATA Gymnastics team.

The San Jose girl has won numerous gymnastics championships, along with academic achievements.

She will soon travel by herself for the first time to a summer gymnastics camp in San Diego. At first, her mother was concerned she would have a hard time finding the right foods for her diet. But she soon realized her daughter has got this handled. Plus, it helps the foodie universe has opened up a world of possibilities for vegans compared to previous decades.

Monrreal emphasized how most food groups and items can be "veganised." For example, when Eshiana has an "ice cream-like" craving, most frozen yogurt shops now have at least a few options to offer.

The mother-daughter duo balk at those claiming vegans don't get enough protein.

Their diet provides a near endless possibility of protein substitutes including beans and tofu.

When others question or inquire about her nutrition, Eshiana will tell them to read up on the topic from various sources.

Monrreal believes whole-heartedly in her daughter's mission. She ran across the PETA nomination when she sought sponsors for her daughter's gymnastics pursuits — especially since the youngster is bound for the sport's World Championships.

PETA Kids—whose motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to eat"—opposes speciesism, which is a human-supremacist worldview, the Washington, D.C.-based organization insists.

More information may be obtained by visiting PETAKids.com.