Special Prevention Unit

Hi Tobacco Control Youth Board and Y.E.S. Team members,

CALL TO ACTION:

Youth across America need YOUR help! That's right, we need you to help us once again, fight Big Tobacco! We not only want you to fight Big Tobacco, we want you to personally address the American Movie Association and the Screen Actors Guild. We discussed this at our meeting just this past Saturday, January 20, 2007, after I had a meeting with Cranford Johnson Robinson Woods (CJRW) Account Executive, Kelli McCrary, who works the Stamp Out Smoking (SOS) program on Friday.

They need our help! They want us to, and I quote, "...bring to the public's attention how much smoking takes place in movies and to send a message to movie-makers, theaters and actors that it is unacceptable." Kelli McCray 1/04/07

Although we discussed it at our TCYB/YES Team meeting, I thought I'd re-cap it here:

This is the gist of what we can do and how to go about it.

Kelli: We would like to accomplish this awareness through the following tactics:

* Letter-Writing campaign to movie studios, actors, and theatres (on February 10, 2007, we will all meet in Hazen, Arkansas to assist with this task. Jordan (TCYB member) and the Hazen YES Team leader has agreed to host the next meeting. He plans to rally up all of his members to assist...but we need YOU there too. We need as many letters as we can possibly get. If you aren't able to come to the meeting, you can always email them to gperez@fsainc.org. I'll make sure Kelli receives the letters.

* Send letters to the editors of your local newspaper. I can provide you with links so that you can provide plenty of good info that editors need to know related to the issue.

* IMMEDIATE ACTION ITEM: Design OUR OWN flyer for our protest. Yep! We've got a few cool prizes lined up for the winning Smoke Free Movies Design. Yeah, I actually said that...how cool! I'm hoping that our group can come up with something just amazing that will spread the message to everyone that sees it. Our only rules are to be creative and get it in by February 1, 2007. You can email it or mail it. If you send it by email, send it to gperez@fsainc.org. If you mail it, send it to TCYB-YES Team, 628 West Broadway, Suite 101, North Little Rock, AR 72114. Call if you have more questions: 888.313.0388.

* Pass out flyers at movie theaters and put them on cars where ever movies are been watched, sold, and just whatever...you don't even have to leave town to do that. Last year we put post-it notes on all the cars at one of the theaters here in Little Rock. So that we will remain nameless...I won't tell you which members did it and what theater it was. We will just keep it a secret.

Other groups across the country will be doing the same thing the week of February 18-25, 2007. We know that your efforts will not go unnoticed if we all join together and really act as one unified front. Of course, the list above is just a sampling of ideas that Mrs. Kelli had in mind.

You being YOUTH, can come up with more ideas and utilize your local YES TEAMS.

So what do you say?

I think it is absolutely ridiculous the use of any tobacco product in movies...and even worse for movies that are PG-13, PG, and G.

What is that all about? Go figure! Let's do our part...


Links:
http://www.seethruthesmoke.com
www.smokefreemovies.ucsf.edu



Genine L. Perez
Family Service Agency
628 West Broadway, Suite 101,
North Little Rock, AR 72114
gperez@fsainc.org
www.yesteam.org
501.240.6064 Cell/mobile
501.375.1338 Telephone
501.376.3747 Fax
888.313.0338 Toll Free
gperez@fsacinc.org (please note new email address)