Protect Westchester County Kids from Big Tobacco

The Westchester County Legislature recently held a public hearing on the proposal to restrict the sale of flavored e-cigarettes and this morning I helped drop off hundreds of petitions to members of the legislature supporting this issue.

Restricting flavored e-cigarettes is sorely needed because tobacco companies target kids with flavors like cotton candy, bubble gum, cream cookie and lemonade. The numbers don’t lie. In New York, the rates of teen tobacco use are continuing to climb as 27% of New York high school students are now using e-cigarettes. As a parent and involved member of my community, this is really alarming and requires action.

Beyond the e-cigarette issue there is an urgent need to protect youth from ALL flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes. Nearly 13% of adults across the state still smoke and many of these adults were enticed to begin this deadly addiction by menthol cigarettes. For decades, menthol has been the ultimate flavor. Tobacco companies have a long history of deceptively marketing menthol tobacco products. Menthol makes it easier to start smoking by masking the harshness of tobacco smoke. A wealth of research indicates that African-American neighborhoods have a disproportionate number of tobacco retailers and more marketing of menthol products so that raises a social justice issue in my mind even beyond the public health concerns.

I thank the Westchester County Legislature for considering action to address this health danger and Governor Cuomo for prioritizing this issue. Moving forward, I urge Westchester and New York State leaders to take an even stronger stand against Big Tobacco by restricting the sale of all flavored tobacco products including menthol cigarettes. It’s the right thing to do to protect the health of our communities.

Marcia Earle

Volunteer for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network

Ossining, NY