Famous Vegans - Russell Simmons

Russell Simmons, 2008.

Russell Simmons

Born Russell Wendell Simmons on October 4, 1957. He is an American business magnate. He is the co-founder of the hip-hip label Def Jam and creator of the clothing lines Phat Farm, Argyleculture and American Classics. He sold Phat Farm in 2004 and stepped down as their CEO in 2007. He is the editor-in-chief of the online social network community Global Grind. He is also a long-time supporter for gay rights and believes in marriage equality. He is the author of several books, including Life and Def and Do You! and Super Rich. You can find his website at this link.

He became vegetarian around 1995 and vegan around 2000. His clothing line Argyleculture is completely cruelty-free. It contains no fur, leather or wool.

Quotes by Russell Simmons:

"I was raised eating meat just like most other Americans. I believed that finishing my dinner and gulping down my milk would make me grow up to be big and strong. ... Never once did I consider exactly what I was eating or what happened to the animal before it reached my plate."

"A hamburger was something stuck between two buns -- not a cow, a wing was something you dipped in BBQ sauce -- not a chicken, and milk was something you drank as a human, never realizing it was only meant for a calf."

"It wasn't until about fifteen years ago [article 2010] when I began taking yoga classes at Jivamukti Yoga Center in NYC that I became vegetarian."

"I’m a yogi. Yoga scripture was written long before there was ever Buddhist scripture, or before there was the Bible or Koran or a Torah. Yoga sutras are science for happiness. My religion is compassion. Yoga sutras are a science that I practice daily, and religiously."

"The more I opened myself up to the idea of the full scope of exactly what non-violence translates to, the less interested I became in consuming the energy associated with the flesh of an animal that only knew suffering in his/her life and pain and terror in its death. The more I learned about factory farming and the cruelty animals raised for food must endure before they are led (or dragged) to slaughter, the more I realized that I could not, in good conscience, be a contributor to such violence."

"About ten years ago [article 2010], I began to live my life in what many vegans refer to as "fully awake." I became a full-on vegan and have never looked back."

"Being a thoughtful vegan makes our time on this Earth more peaceful and joyous, because you get to have a hand in promoting and increasing the happiness, good health and well-being of others -- both animal and human -- rather than being an instrument of their suffering and death."

"We know that the raising of these animals for food is twice as harmful to the environment as all the forms of transportation put together. We know that. That is common sense, but it is not passed around."

"The impact on the Earth from eating meat is mind-blowing. Every year in the U.S., more than 27 billion animals are slaughtered for food. Meat consumption is poisoning and depleting our potable water, land and pure, clean air. More than half of the water used in the United States today goes to animal agriculture, and since animals on factory farms produce 130 times more waste than the human population, the result is polluting our waterways. Animal excrement emits gases, such as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia, which poison the air around farms, as well as methane and nitrous oxide, all resulting in the number one cause of global warming. This needs to stop."

"I am particularly saddened that in poor urban communities the cheapest, most accessible food is fast food, which is also the most likely to increase the risk of developing various diseases and illnesses, including heart attacks, strokes, cancer, diabetes and obesity."

"I am optimistic that through education, people, especially parents, will be able to make wise decisions about what pollutants they want to avoid putting into their children's bodies and take responsibility as humans for our part in the destruction of Mother Earth."

"Every day, more and more people are turning vegan, more children are looking at a rib and making the connection that it came from a suffering animal and more people are loving themselves and the Earth they live on just a little bit more by saying no to meat and dairy."

His clothing line Argyleculture is completely cruelty-free. When asked whether he thinks that sustainable fashion makes business sense, he answered:

"Yes. There are all kinds of alternatives to fur and a lot of creative alternatives to leather and all kinds of money to be made. And there’s a white space, and as more people become more conscious, there is an opportunity to do a lot more things that are creative and different. There’s a big hole as more people are becoming more aware and would like to know that their products are less harmful to the earth and to animals."

About Argyleculture, he said:

"We don’t use animal products, so no leather. We use cotton for the sweaters, not wool. "

"We spread the word, we show the videos and we say a silent prayer for the animals that continue to suffer in a world that is not their own."

Quotes are from his 2010 article for Ellen's Life Why I'm Vegan, his 2011 interview with Couterre and his 2011 interview with PR.com.