DQ 1: Tobacco is a racial justice issue

In April 2021, the FDA has announced that it will ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars within the next year, a move the tobacco industry has pushed against for the last decade. According to acting FDA commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock, “With these actions, the FDA will help significantly reduce youth initiation, increase the chances of smoking cessation among current smokers, and address health disparities experienced by communities of color, low-income populations, and LGBTQ+ individuals, all of whom are far more likely to use these tobacco products.”

Read through the links below and do a little more research on your own, then answer the following discussion prompt:  

First explain why tobacco & tobacco use is a racial justice issue. (You can discuss any type of tobacco use or focus specifically on menthol products. In your explanation, you should link health equity, disparities, social determinants of health, and cultural competence. You should make us understand and actually care about this issue.)

Second, tell us what has been done or is currently being done to address this issue. For example, Is the government doing enough to address this issue? Are tobacco companies doing enough to address this issue? Who else is doing anything? What are they doing?

Third, tell us, in your opinion, what else could the government (both federal & local), tobacco companies, nonprofit agencies, and/or individuals do to address this issue? [Be sure to offer at least THREE things which haven’t been already posted in the discussion forum]

Then tell us how long you think it may take for some of the racial disparities associated with tobacco use to dissipate.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/big-tobacco-hooked-black-americans-menthols-altria_n_60ac03e8e4b03135479a76a3

https://countertobacco.org/resources-tools/evidence-summaries/disparities-in-point-of-sale-advertising-and-retailer-density/

https://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/tobaccocontrol/early/2021/12/13/tobaccocontrol-2021-056838.full.pdf

https://www.publichealthlawcenter.org/sites/default/files/resources/Tobacco-Industry-Targeting.pdf

https://www.heart.org/-/media/files/about-us/policy-research/fact-sheets/tobacco-and-clean-air/structural-racism-and-tobacco-fact-sheet.pdf?la=en

https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/programs-impact/sdoh.htm

PLEASE NOTE: You need to do more than merely summarizing what the above links stated. Write YOUR thoughts, YOUR ideas, YOUR opinions. Be sure to base your response on fact and your own experiences. However, if all you do is summarize what already appears in the below links, you will have to write it again