Youth Advocacy: THE LIST

Looking for ways to prevent tobacco use? Here are some suggested activities for youth groups.
Please remember, with any activity you choose:

Rallying the Troops
Who likes field trips? That's what we thought. Here's a good one: Write, call, or visit your state or local government officials and let them know how you feel about the tobacco industry's ability to advertise, a tobacco tax increase, and adequate funding for tobacco control programs. Organize your own rally and then spend the day visiting legislator's offices or meeting with county, city or town officials.

Operation Storefront
Sick of looking at tobacco ads plastered all over your local convenience store? Get a team of your friends together and go from store to store and do some real investigative work. Count tobacco signs, posters, banners, doormats, and any other tobacco merchandise. Look inside and outside. Don't forget gas pumps and countertops. See if these advertisements are next to candy and gum or other popular items for kids.
Watch out for promotional material at 3 ft. or below the eye level of small children. Keep track of special sales, too. Share your report with the press. For more details on this activity and a data collection form, visit http://tobaccofreekids.org/youthaction/standup/

Send it Back
Why are tobacco ads all over your favorite magazines? The tobacco companies know you read these magazines, and that's why they advertise in magazines like Rolling Stone and Sports Illustrated. It's time to tell the publishers your life is worth more than Big Tobacco's advertising dollars. Pull out the subscription cards from those magazines and send them back to the publishing company. Write a note on the card telling them that you don't want to read their magazine if they don't stop helping Big Tobacco to addict youth. You can take it a step further by writing
a letter to the editor.

Smoke Screening Movies
Who's your favorite movie or television star? Ever seen them light up a cigarette on screen or in a TV show? Check your favorite films and shows for tobacco use and let us know if they glamorize smoking. Write a letter to the actor, actress, or director encouraging them not to promote smoking and tobacco in their films and TV shows. To learn more about how smoking in the movies and the tobacco industry's secret ties to Hollywood, visit http://smokefreemovies.ucsf.edu

Out for Dinner
Tired of the question, "Smoking or non?" The next time you go out to dinner with your friends, make sure your voice is heard. Following your dinner, ask to speak with the manager of the restaurant. Ask them if they would consider going completely smoke-free. Express your opinion that you and other customers would appreciate a smoke-free environment while they are eating. Come prepared with the knowledge of some basic facts and statistics. The important ones to know for this activity are statistics about the dangers of secondhand smoke (specifically about it's effects on their employees), statistics about the percentage of people who would support a smoke-free restaurant (if available), and statistics showing that restaurants who go smoke-free do not lose business. Follow up by writing a letter to the manager the next day.

Summertime
So where are your favorite places to go with your friends? The mall? The beach? The ballpark? Combine a day of fun with some advocacy, and you've got yourselves an event. Choose a place where you like to hang out and work to improve their tobacco policy. Research their current policy and find out if and where smoking is permitted. Get permission to be at the location and be honest about what you'll be doing there. Make copies of flyers to hand out that talk about the dangers of secondhand smoke and your proposal to make the location tobacco-free. Alert the media to what you're doing and invite them to come. Head to your location armed with plastic gloves, garbage bags, a stereo, and a video camera if possible. Set up your camp in a central location and get some music going. You'll want to have someone stationed at your camp to talk to people about what you're doing & hand out your flyers. The rest of you have a job to do. Scatter and pick up cigarette butts from the location. Videotape your progress, including your personal comments about what you're doing. Talk to others and interview them on camera if possible. Talk to the media. Talk to the manager of the location. Possibly have a petition for people to sign supporting your cause. When the day is over, prepare your follow-up. You can present the manager with a proposal for a new policy, ask them to enforce their current policy better, ask for better signage to prohibit smoking, give them the petition, etc. There are lots of ways to personalize this type of advocacy so that it can work for you and accomplish what you want it to. Try this type of event at beaches, malls, parks, water parks, the zoo, amusement parks, fairgrounds, soccer/baseball fields, etc.

Back to School
Is your school campus tobacco-free? Believe it or not, many aren't. Research your school's current policy on tobacco and find out what it includes. Does it include parking lots, athletic fields, administration buildings, and private offices? Are there exceptions? Are the current rules enforced? Are teachers subject to the same rules? Once you have conducted your research, gather support from classmates, teachers, administrators, maintenance staff, parents, community citizens, school board members, etc. Educate these people about the dangers of secondhand smoke and the benefits of a safer learning environment. Find someone on your school board who supports your cause. Request time at a school board meeting to present your case. Focus on facts and the support you have gained from your school and community. Present them with a sample policy of what you would like your school to enforce. (Sample policies can be requested by emailing JEL through the website, www.JELiowa.org) Make it happen! Don't be discouraged if your policy is not immediately accepted. Keep trying. Always return to further education about the issue to gain more community and school support. And finally, enjoy your tobacco-free school.