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Issue link: https://digital.miamilivingmagazine.com/i/7596
Alicia immediately apologizes for running a few minutes late upon entering the Venice Beach café. Her honey- blonde hair is pulled into a ponytail and her lean, petite frame is dressed in a fitted grey hoodie and eggplant-hued yoga pants — bringing to mind the scene in the sleeper hit Clueless, where Cher Horowitz is lounging around on the couch with Josh (Paul Rudd) talking about how binding her party clothes are. Here she is, up close and personal, someone that every female teen dreamed of being after seeing the movie. The phrase 'life imitates art' rings true for Alicia, as the parallel between Alicia and Cher is obvious, at least to me. From glamorous actress (Alicia) /envied teen (Cher) to laudable philanthropist/do- gooder —both transition into activists lending their popularity to more meaningful causes. Alicia has noticeably evolved into this amazing animal and planet advocate. And just as Cher said to Tai (Brittany Murphy), "We should do something for mankind and humanity…" Alicia is doing precisely that. For the past few months, Alicia has made her rounds appearing on all the major talk shows and holding books signings for her first book, The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet. I caught up Alicia, just as she was wrapping up her tour, to discuss her book, what she's most passionate about, and her latest endeavors. "Don't you want to use your popularity for a good cause?" – Cher, Clueless. Alicia has been using her fame for a commendable cause for several years now. A prominent voice in the PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) crusade, she literally made a splash in PETA's sexy first-ever naked veggie testimonial PSA. Alicia hasn't limited her time to one organization. "I work with anyone who has a great thing that they want me to participate in, sometimes it's PETA, sometimes it's PCRM (Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine), I love them, sometimes it's the Humane Society, trying to get Proposition 2 passed… We're trying to get foie gras outlawed in California. I've worked on all those campaigns. It just depends on who is doing what and when," said Alicia. But all that had to be put on hold when Alicia took on her "biggest project yet," writing her book. "I'm only one person, so I can only do so much. The book took up a huge chunk of my life. It took me a 1 ½ years, even more now with the press part," expressed Alicia. "Now everyone can always just read this, and this will be my form of activism." The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet, a cookbook/diet book filled with thought-provoking knowledge, elaborates on how adhering to a vegan lifestyle is advantageous to your health, appearance and best of all, the earth. Packed with interesting facts and amazing success stories, it's easy to read through this book quickly. You may find that, even if you are a die-hard meat lover, the wonderful and magical benefits outweigh your carnivorous tendencies. "If you read the book and you're like, 'I want to feel like that. I want to feel younger, look better, and not be dependant on medicine and coffee… I want to be free. I want to feel this amazing.' There are three entry points: flirt, vegan or superhero. It also helps if you have any kind of illness," explained Alicia. Don't get discouraged if the adaptation takes some time. Alicia admitted that she "flirted" with it before fully becoming a vegan. "From the age of 8 to 21, I was a flirt, I'd play with the idea and then I'd give up. When I was 21 I became a vegan, I saw the images of what was done to animals and that was not acceptable to me anymore," said Alicia soberly. MIAMI LIVING 77 ML EXCLUSIVE! ML EXCLUSIVE!