Forum aims to raise tobacco awareness

Prompted by the citywide smoking ban, students are talking about tobacco.

By Brad Fischer

Published Nov. 10, 2006

With the passage of Columbia's citywide smoking ban, students have pushed tobacco issues to the forefront of discussion.

On Thursday night at the Gaines/Oldham Black Culture Center, the Wellness Resource Center's tobacco coordinator Tiffany Bowman led a discussion of the risks and dangers of smoking while focusing on how the tobacco industry targets the black community.

The citywide smoking ban was considered a major win for the anti-tobacco movement. Bars, restaurants and bowling alleys will have to be smoke free by Jan. 9.

"I thought it was really classist to say that if you work in a bank or a day care center, you're protected, but if you work in a bar, restaurant or bowling alley you're on your own," Bowman said.

Bowman said that though she was pleased that the citywide smoking ban will go into effect next year, she was disappointed that Amendment 3, which would increase the tax on tobacco products, did not pass.

She said the tobacco lobby in Missouri is strong. Bowman said the industry spent $40 million in the state on advertisements opposing the amendment. Only one state has a cigarette tax smaller than Missouri's 17-cent tax.

The discussion began with a discussion about the effects of tobacco on the black community.

The forum showed some sample advertisements targeting the black community.

Bowman said the industry targets the community by advertising heavily in the top three most read magazines in the community: Jet, Essence and Ebony. She said companies also advertise through black organizations and events and that black models are used in the ads.

Bowman's presentation said African-American smokers are also three times more likely than white smokers to smoke mentholated cigarettes. Mentholated cigarettes are considered to be more dangerous because the cooling sensation enables users to inhale the smoke more deeply and hold it in longer, she said.

For that reason, Bowman said, the death rate from tobacco-related illnesses is much higher within the black community where 45,000 people die each year.

Peers Against Secondhand Smoke will hold events on Tuesday and Thursday.

From noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday, PASS will hold a lecture in 234 Brady Commons about how to quit smoking. On Thursday, in the same room at the same time, the group will hold a discussion about how the LGBT community is targeted by the tobacco industry. Lunch will be provided to the first 50 people to arrive at each event.

On Thursday, PASS will also hold the Great Mizzou Smokeout to coincide with the Great American Smokeout, a day for people to quit smoking.

"We want to encourage MU students to quit for a day or to help a friend quit and to become more aware of smoking-related issues," Bowman said.