Journalist, radio personality, and Emmy Award-winning television host, Jacque Reid had a discussion with A.R. Bernard on ARB TV to talk about her quest as a vegan and her platform, “Vegan, Sexy, Cool.”
Jacque revealed to Bernard that she decided to pursue veganism for ethical reasons.
“Those of us who are ethical vegans become vegans because of animal cruelty. What happens primarily in the food industry, but also in the fashion industry, and so many other industries where animals are abused. You know I’m a huge animal lover, and so that was the thing,” she stated.
Reid, who had issues with her knees, later discovered that it was a runner’s knee when she was diagnosed by her doctor. After practicing veganism for some time, she then decided to pursue it full force, observing that it was improving her health.
She was also compelled to research the impact of animal cruelty, which challenged her to make some adjustments.
“When you are a vegan, it is a complete lifestyle shift. That means there is no way you participate in anything that harms animals. So that means the makeup that I wear, the products that I use, because a lot of things are tested on animals or they have animal products in them, so I don’t indulge in anything.”
Reid also mentioned how her vegan lifestyle affects what she wears. “I realized that I could not eat meat anymore and not just eat meat or animal products, but I did not want to wear them.”
The journalist also discovered the effects animal cruelty had on workers as well, especially when the COVID-19 pandemic began.
“When you look at during the COVID crisis, what was happening in those meat plants, people who had no choice but to go in there, work, kill those animals, package up the meat, and do all that kind of stuff,” she explained. “They were not being tested, were working close to each other [and] there are people that were working over them in management who were placing bets on who would get first?”
The Emmy-winning host observed that veganism has compelled her to be more empathetic towards different things on earth. “With becoming vegan I find that in a sense I’m leaning more into kindness in the world. To be kind towards animals [and] the planet, all the things that God created, having a better relationship as a Christian with those animals, plants, and the environment as a whole can benefit from us going vegan.”
Reid also spoke about her brand, Vegan, Sexy, and Cool. According to its website, the platform is a modern guide to being vegan and fabulous. Her belief is that “you can still live a sexy life and still be vegan. That is what the brand is all about.”
