photo credit: jk.fotografie
In New York City alone, there are over 11,500 stores licensed to sell tobacco products. In a recent drive to boost awareness of the health risks associated with smoking New York’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg implemented a health awareness campaign targeting these outlets.
The store owners have been asked to display signs outside their shops which show graphic images of how smoking tobacco harms the body. A few of the posters show a lung badly damaged by cancer, a decaying tooth, and a brain that has suffered a stroke, all aftermaths of using tobacco products. The posters include information for the residents of New York on where to get help in quitting smoking, and a call to join New York City’s quit program.
Tobacco Companies Strive to Maintain their Market – While Smokers Continue to Die from their Habit
Surely, you may think, any attempt to reduce the amount of deaths by smoking has to be a good thing? Not only will there be a reduction in the numbers of deaths due to smoking but non smokers will have added financial benefits such as more money in their pockets and access to far cheaper life insurance.
The three big tobacco companies, Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds Tobacco and Lorillard, however, have banned together in an attempt to cease the campaign’s efforts and have the signs taken down. In an effort to keep their customers, they are taking legal action against what they perceive to be a so far successful campaign to cut the number of smokers in New York City.
Tobacco Manufacturers Talk of ‘Rights’ in Attempt to Win Against Health Campaign
Unfortunately if history repeats itself, they may well succeed in their attempt. In 2003, Reynolds and Lorillard were successful in suing the California Department of Health Services and managed to wipe out their effective anti-smoking advertisements. The tobacco giants usually call on the services of the First Amendment in these types of cases arguing that store owners should not be forced to put up any material they do not wish to.
The Residents of New York City, however, have rights which far outweigh the spurious rights cited by the big tobacco companies – for instance – the right to be educated against the dangers of smoking and the right to live a long healthy life – with the added benefit of good medical and life insurance.
