Chris Andersen is Putting His Tattoos to Good Use

Andersen recently teamed up with PETA in attempt bring awareness around animal cruelty in their “Ink, Not Mink” campaign, encouraging others to show off their skin and let animals keep theirs. It’s a great cause and makes you look at Andersen’s tats in a different light. PETA explains:

Each year, millions of foxes, minks, coyotes, rabbits, and even dogs and cats are bludgeoned to death, electrocuted, strangled, or skinned alive—all in the name of fashion. Chris explains, “These animals aren’t dying in a good way. … Animals, they don’t deserve to be beaten or slaughtered [for fur].”

Andersen’s ability to jump and to seemingly fly across the court, dunking over his opponents and blocking their shots, earned him his “Birdman” nickname. The freedom of movement that Andersen enjoys on the court is in stark contrast to the cramped, filthy conditions endured by animals on fur farms. Crammed into severely crowded cages, animals on fur farms are unable to take more than a few steps in any direction and are denied everything that is natural and important to them. Many animals go insane under these conditions, and some turn to self-mutilation out of anguish and even cannibalize their cagemates.

Andersen’s behind-the-scenes photo shoot for PETA: