Wyntergrace, whose dad is TV personality Montel Williams, writes:

I'm a big fan of yours. It seems that we have a few things in common. We all love dogs, live on the East Coast, have fantastic moms and maternal grand moms and both of our dads are quite famous. In our household we also eat healthy foods and I am working on a school project to get healthier foods in schools across the country. I would love for you to join my campaign and sign my petition and encourage other students and families to follow our own and respective families' lead.

Neal Barnard of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has been working with Wyntergrace, lobbying for change. He says: "President Obama's daughters attend a private school that offers healthy vegetarian options that all students should have access to. But most schools only provide meatless meals if Congress pushes them to do so." Wyntergrace went vegetarian four years ago, but claims she never liked meat. According to US News & World Report, "Even at Thanksgiving, when her parents would urge her to eat traditional turkey, she'd balk, saying that turkeys shouldn't have to die to celebrate Thanksgiving."

You can read Wyntergrace's full letter here. The White House has no comment. But can you blame them? Malia is 11. Sasha is turning 8. Though their father has been elected to public office, the girls are technically private citizens. Should they really be expected to take a public position on any cause, even something as positive as healthy lunch?

One thing is for sure: If media-savvy Wyntergrace intended to get some attention for her campaign by using the girls' names, she succeeded.

Malia and Sasha Obama Urged To Join Veggie Campaign [US News & World Report]

Related: Healthy School Lunches [Official Site]
Related, sorta: How To Raise A Foodie [Strollerderby]

In this hostile, ultra-macho, morally arid climate, to stand up and be counted as a male vegetarian must require cojones of immense size, much bigger balls, in fact, than your average carnivorous wimp, who just goes along with the crowd.

Of course, in our collective human history, the man was the hunter while the woman collected colorful berries. Fast forward a few millennia and dudes go in for the kill on Wall Street while women forage and collect berry-colored shoes. But like all generalizations, this is only partly true. Men eat berries, women eat meat. And while there was a time that salad bars were for chicks and steakhouses were for the boys, haven't we left all that behind? Are vegetarian (or vegan) guys — presumably educated about the cruelty of factory farming — smarter, ballsier, sexier?

Full disclosure: My boyfriend is vegan. He is not a "hippie," hates camping and never comes near patchouli. He eats, among other things, popcorn, spicy noodles, French fries, jelly beans, guacamole, cookies and tacos made with beans and soy chicken, none of which could be called "rabbit food." So I don't agree with Jessica's previous post branding male vegetarians "sissies." Just like it's offensive to say that eating meat is "manly," isn't it awful to assume that not eating meat is "girly"? Why would caring about what's in your body be gender-specific? And what's up with using "sissy" or "girly" as an insult?

It Takes A Real Man To Say He Enjoys Tofu [Guardian]
Related: Soy Vey! Does Eating Tofu Lower Sperm Count? [Scientific American]
Soy-Based Foods May Lower Sperm Count: Study [Reuters]
Soy Foods 'Reduce Sperm Numbers' [BBC]
Health: Soya-Based Foods May Harm Male Fertility, Say Scientists [Guardian]
Earlier: Do More Men Really Go Vegan Because Of Pamela Anderson's Boobs?
Can Female Vegetarians And Male Carnivores Ever Find True Foodie Love?