e tobacco industry has gone to great lengths to target the African-American community over the past 30 years, according to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. rough market research and aggressive advertising, the industry has successfully penetrated this population. e industry’s “investment” in the African-American community has had a destructive impact. African-Americans suffer the greatest burden of tobacco-related mortality of any ethnic or racial group in the United States. e Brown and Williamson (B&W) tobacco company marketing document proposed that B&W start selling Kool King cigarettes in packs of 10 cigarettes in addition to the usual size pack containing 20 cigarettes. e proposal was that B&W sell the smaller packs for about half the price of a full pack. B&W’s target market for this proposal is lower-income or unemployed adult black males. e B&W marketing employee says that a rationale for selling 10-packs of cigarettes is that it “will generate purchases when target audience suffers greatest financial need (just before the next pay check / government check arrives).”

Elroy Brown of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Arkansas says, “Don’t take my word for it, this information can be found by going to Tobacco Documents online (http://www.tobaccodocuments.org/). Learn more about Elroy Brown and his work with the Mississippi County Coalition for a Tobacco free Arkansas on following pages.

National African AmericanTobacco Prevention Network

On November 4th, this nation forever turned a page in history by electing the first Presi-dent of African descent…Barack Obama! His charming smile, thoughtful eyes and old school cool reassured an overwhelming majority of Americans that he was the right man for the job at this time. His election sent a signal to the world that America can (sometimes reluctantly) still provide the examples for others to emulate and aspire to. Even his rivals are becoming part of his team, signaling a confidence that has gone want-ing in recent years. He is, indeed, the man for the job!

AAnd while our 44th President had to conquer more than two years of campaigning, countless primary debates, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, John McCain, Sarah Palin, unpub-lished threats on his life, and even the death of his grandmother – all with a dignity and power that is rarely seen – we now know that President Obama’s biggest challenge (besides the economy), might be his addiction to nicotine.

In the November issue of Men’s Health Magazine, Brother Barack discusses his chal-lenges with attempting to stop smoking and advises about ridding yourself as many times as necessary to remain quit. He repeated those sentiments to Tom Brokaw in early December on Meet the Press. We sent President-Elect Obama a press release on No-vember 6th, congratulating him on his victory and offers to help him quit. In honoring full disclosure, we haven’t heard back from him as yet, but we understand he’s a bit preoc-cupied these days.

Barack Obama’s election also signals something else. It is firmly believed that he will change the health dialogue and close the national debate on universal health care, estab-lishing prevention as the foundation from which to build consensus. If this, in fact, does happen, then we are likely to see the issue of tobacco use become a higher priority for the National Cancer Institute, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Insti-tutes of Health and the Federal Drug Administration, with an Administration that is very supportive of diminishing its impact. How sweet would this be?

NAATPN will be front and center in this new environment, ensuring that the impact of tobacco on communities of African descent are known, represented and diminished. We will monitor, we will agitate, we will educate and train, and we will help to make contin-ued progress and change toward reducing tobacco’s impact on the lives of people we care most about.

President Obama, we also care about you and publically acknowledge your widespread inspiration. By helping you quit, we want to return the favor.

Asante Sana!Yes We Did!From the Desk of the Executive Director, William S. Robinson, MA

e National African American Tobacco Prevention Network (NAATPN) made its debut in the National Networks for Tobacco Control and Prevention website.

In 2008In 2008, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Office on Smoking and Health (OSH) funded six Networks to provide leadership and expertise in the development of policy re-lated initiatives. e Networks collaborate with the National To-bacco Control Program (NTCP) which includes OSH, Network members, Network partners, States, and other local and national tobacco control organizations to advance the science and practice of tobacco control in the United States. NAATPN, along with the five other network partners are featured on this website.

To learn more about NAATPN, the National Networks for To-bacco and Prevention, and each network member, visit their website at: www.tobaccopreventionnetworks.org

NAATPN is now featured on the

National Networks for TobaccoControl and Prevention Website

NAATPN is proud to announce the most recent addition to our team, Ms. Alene Bynum, our new Communications Director.

With a bachelor’s degree in political science from North Carolina Central University, Alene comes to us with a diverse background that includes over 20 years of public relations, 12 years of banking and finance, 6 years of training and facilitating, and 5 years of marketing and communications experiences.

Prior to her employment with NAATPN, Alene served as the Marketing Director for a small marketing firm. She developed and implemented a marketing strategy that converted the company from a two man organization to a twenty employee corporation within within one years’ time. Other key accomplishments include develop- ing and customizing training materials that resulted in the highest overall class participation and student achievements for US Airways training department, as well as receiving her Six Sigma Black Belt training certification and professional mentor /coaching certification where she presently serves as a professional mentor for EQ Mentor in Charlotte, NC.

Born and raised in Durham, NC, Alene presently resides in Charlotte, NC where she is an she is an active member on several boards and volunteer organizations. Please join us in welcoming Alene to our staff.

Alene Bynum

by: La Tanisha C. WrightNAATPN West Region Director

“It is very rare that one takes a stand on their principles when they might be unpopular or inconvenient. ese people are called heroes,” Keite Young, singer/songwriter with Hidden Beach Records, stated after reading an article in the Washington Informer about La Tanisha C. Wright taking on the tobacco industry.

MsMs. Wright struggles to call herself a hero and speaks often on her regrets of working for the tobacco industry. Prior to working for Brown & Williamson Tobacco, she was a high school mathematics teacher in Charleston, South Carolina just barely getting paid enough to live above the poverty level. In 2001, while attending a NAACP job fair in Dallas, Texas, a Brown & Williamson recruiter lured Ms. Wright into a position that a twenty-one-year-old a year outout of college couldn’t refuse. Skeptical at first, Ms. Wright attempted to walk away. e recruiter guaranteed, “Cigarettes sell themselves. People choose to smoke. You’ll make a lot of money.” He then offered a considerable signing bonus and a competitive salary with guaranteed quarterly bonuses and incentive payments. He offered a brand new vehicle for both professional and unlimited personal use, along with that, a corporate credit card to cover all businessbusiness and vehicle expenses, including gas; it even covered her residential wireless internet and cell phone bills. Brown & William-son offered a 100% tuition reimbursement program, paid vacation, twice her annual salary in life insurance, a fully funded pension plan, a fabulous health benefits package, and generous stock options.

Brown & Williamson offered job security, however, after five quar-ters of employment, her physician diagnosed her with insomnia. She couldn’t sleep because she hated how the tobacco industry targeted Black communities for disease and disability. She hated how they targeted Black youth for addiction. In 2004, and after two promo-tions, a significant salary increase, and three years of working as a

manager for the trade marketing division, there was nothing the tobacco industry could offer her; she resigned, and joined the Na-tional African American Tobacco Prevention Network.

“What do you fear most about fighting Big Tobacco as a former tobacco manager?” a journalist for the Washington Informer asked Ms. Wright after she presented Follow the Signs II in Washington, DC. She thought for a moment. “I fear not getting this message to enough smokers in enough time to save them from a lifetime of dis-ease that can ultimately lead to death.” e journalist paused. “But aren’t you afraid the tobacco industry will find out?” Ms. Wright rreplied. “People ask me that all of the time. What if someone told you that they administered poison to kill someone? What if after telling you this, they told you not to tell anyone? Would you be will-ing to keep that secret?” e reporter shook his head no. La Tanisha continued, “What if someone told you they targeted a specific race, targeted youth, and administered poison to millions with intent to kill? Wouldn’t you tell? I’m not only going to tell, but I’m telling everyone I know.”

Why does the tobacco industry push menthol cigarettes, which are potentially more hazardous than non-mentholated cigarettes, more in Black communities? Did the nicotine content really increase dra-matically? How does the tobacco industry use sex appeal to lure in children? How do retailers work with the tobacco industry to sell tobacco products? How can people avoid the trap of addiction? What methods does the tobacco industry utilize to lure in African AAmerican youth? Why are Black communities plastered with tobacco advertising? Why does the tobacco industry prey on Black communities? Ms. Wright’s answer: racism. Racism has weakened the Black community in so many ways, leaving it more vulnerable to predatory business practices such as tobacco marketing.

Follow the Signs (FTS) exposes those practices and La Tanisha Wright travels the United States making sure youth, community, religious, and tobacco control leaders are aware of Big Tobacco’s secrets. FTS raises awareness about how Big Tobacco specifically targets Black communities for disease, disability, and death. It is a unique, intense, and valuable program that assists in the understanding of tobacco industry market-ing techniques. It addresses the impact of Big Tobacco contracts on the placement, presence, price, and promotion of tobacco in Black communities. It also addresses tobacco industry practices in Black commu-nities vs. the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement. FTS currently has two editions: Follow the Signs I: Tobacco Control Leaders and Follow the Signs II: Youth & Community Leaders.

e Follow the Signs II: Youth & Community Leaders training held on October 29, 2008 in Washington, DC was organized by Debra Annand, Project Director, and Charles Debnam, Community Outreach Spe-cialist, of DC Tobacco Free Families. e participants included representatives from the American Legacy Foundation, the DC Department of Health, the Department of the Environment, the American Cancer Society, Team Champions, Power Moves, DC Healthy Start, the Mautner Project, Planned Parenthood, and True Believers Church.

When asked what they liked most about the training, participants responded with: the trainer’s credentials of having worked for the tobacco industry, the manual, the connection of slavery to tobacco use, the use of confidential RJ Reynolds and Brown & Williamson video footage and documents that haven’t been released to the public, the passion of the trainer and willingness to use her knowledge of the tobacco indus-try to empower the targeted community, and the use of archived videos and documents, visuals, and inter-active dialogue.

While Ms. Wright might regret working for the tobacco industry, she will never regret what working for the tobacco industry has equipped her with—the ability to share the uncensored truth about the predatory business practices conducted by the tobacco industry. In the past three months, Follow the Signs has also been presented in Columbus, Ohio, Durham, North Carolina, and Honolulu, Hawaii. Here’s what partici-pants have to say about the 5.5 hour interactive training:

“Your presentation of Follow the Signs II was excellent. I really enjoyed the way you were able to keep the audience’s at-tention by incorporating humor, graphic, video and a wealth of information. Per-sonally, I gained so much information regarding tobacco and the techniques the Big Tobacco Companies use to target the African American community and youth.”

Charles Debnam, Community Outreach Specialist, DC Tobacco Free Families

If you were to mention tobacco prevention in the state of Arkansas, one name is sure to come up… Elroy Brown. Elroy Brown is the Chairman/Coordinator of the Missis-sippi County Coalition for a Tobacco Free Arkansas and, as mentioned earlier, is one name many tobacco preven-tion organizations are very familiar with.

e Mississippi County Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Arkansas (MCCTFA) is a tobacco intervention program based in Blytheville, Mississippi County, Arkansas. eir efforts include health promotional campaigns to address disparities, treatment options, and cessation strategies that reduce tobacco use among minority (African Americans and Hispanics) youth and aadults.

“All we‘re trying to do is to bring out the information about the dangers of tobacco use” says Mr. Brown when doing a radio interview on K-Jam with Mike Lester. AAnd that is exactly what he has been doing. Lately, you cannot open up the Blythe-ville Courier Newspaper withoutwithout seeing an article about Elroy and his efforts. Ar-ticles like… “We Don’t Smoke at S---” which exploits a statement made by the R J Reynolds company executives or “Tobacco Industry Targets African American Commu-nity” featured in its entirety on our cover. Right now, his focus is on Arkansas’ Child Safety Seat Law and the dan-gers of second hand smoke. “We are working with the Mississippi County Head Start Program in educating par-ents and employees about the dangers of secondhand smoke exposure, tobacco use and the cessation services provided in Mississippi County. Working with the

Mississippi County Head Start Program provides an avenue for us to reach parents and educate them about the Arkansas Child Safety Seat Law; while educating them about the dangers associated with subjecting their children to second hand smoke”, states Mr. Brown. “Most of the general public does not know the law regarding tobacco use and second hand smoke… No smoking in vehicles with with child passengers.”

So what are the future plans for MCCTFA? Well, accord-ing to Elroy, a lot will take place. e Mississippi County Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Arkansas has developed three main committees in which members are able to find their points of interest and involvement. e commit tees consist of: Strategic Planning, Youth and Cessation. e Strategic Planning Com mittee will work towards the elimination of secondhand smoke at schools, school -sponsored events, public buildings, restaurants, work places and public events. e Youth Committee will involve local youth who seek to educate the African American/Hispanic communities about prob-lems of youth access to tobacco products. It will also edu-cate parents and community organizations about the tobacco industries’ tactic in targeting youth in promotions and advertisement. e cessation committee will focus on increasing the use of tobacco cessation services in Mississippi County in an effort to help people quit smoking. For more information about e Mississippi County Co-alition for a Tobacco Free Arkansas call 1-866-QUIT-N W

CESSAT

ION CORNER

Welcome to the Cessation Corner. In this edition of In-Sight, we will look at the effect of smoking on the eyes.

e main function of the eye is to work with the brain to provide us with vision. ey work just like cameras. Each eye has a lens and light is focused by the lenses and projected onto the delicate membrane lining on the inner eye called the retina. Here are the effects that smoking has on the eyes:

• Smoking drifts up around the eyes, irritating the moist covering of the eyes.

• In a smoker, the risk of developing cataracts (an eye disease that involves the clouding of the natural lens of the eye) is 2 to 3 times greater. Half of the vision loss in African Americans is due to cataracts. Continued smoking drives progression.

BENEFITS OF QUITTING: • e risk of developing or progression of cataracts is lowered; cessation of 10 or more years reduces the risk.

• Eyes look whiter and brighter once they are no longer exposed to irritating smoke.

CESSATION CORNER CESSATION TIP SET A QUIT DATE. is date can have a special meaning like a birthday or anniversary and it can even be a random date. Setting a quit date shows commitment to the quit process.

Please feel free to contact me (Donna Rojas, East Region Director) for additional information or if you are interested in our cessation education workshop at: 301-528-6045 or drojas@naatpn.org.

NORMAL EYE EYE WITH CATARACT

CALEN

DER OF EV

ENTS

OUR STAFF:William S Robinson. MA Marcia Hargrove Alisha SimmonsExecutive Director Administrative Assistant Director of FinanceDurham, NC Durham, NC Summerville, SC

Alene Bynum La Tanisha Wright Donna RojasCommunications Director West Region Director East Region DirectorCharlotte, NC Irving, TX Germantown, MD

CONTACT US:National African America TobaccoPrevention Network400 West Main StreetSuite 415Durham, NC 27701P: (919) 680-4000FF: (919) 680-40041-888-7NAATPNEmail: thenetwork@naatpn.orgWeb: http://www.naatpn.org

WHAT IS NAATPN?e National African American Tobacco Prevention Net-work is a non-profit organization launched in 1999. NAATPN’s Technical Assistance and Training program speaks to the very heart of tradition and culture and strives to provide the organizational development, grassroots organizing, and tobacco advocacy expertise necessary to take on tobacco challenges for communities of color.

MISSION STATEMENTOur mission is to serve as a national organization dedicated to facilitating the development and implementation of comprehensive and community competent tobacco control programs to benefit communities and people of African descent.

NAATPN’S “VILLAGE” MEMBERSHIP AND FUNRAISINGAre you interested in doing even more to help our communities be as healthy as they can be? NAATPN has introduced membership levels and benefits based on the seven principles of Kwanzaa. Membership in NAATPN is a great way to support tobacco control; and join the fight against the decep-tive tactics of the tobacco industry. We invite you to becbecome an active part of “the village” and choose the membership level that fits you. Also, check out our “Dancing for Dollars” campaign. We’re asking for one dollar from every person to help fund tobacco education, prevention, and cessation programs. For more information on becoming a member of NAATPN, visit our website at www.naatpn.org or ccall 1-888-7NAATPN for more information.