John,

In this edition of The Take Down, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids’ Gustavo Torrez interviews Earl D. Fowlkes Jr., President/CEO of the Center for Black Equity, an organization that brings together a multinational network of Black LGBTQ Pride and community-based organizations.

Earl is a longtime tireless advocate for the health of Black and LGBTQ+ communities – two groups the tobacco industry has a notorious history of targeting. Tactics targeting these communities have included direct advertisements, organizational sponsorships, promotional events and even free samples. As a result, both suffer from disproportionately high tobacco use and its associated health consequences.

In this conversation, Earl discusses:

• The toll of tobacco use on Black and LGBTQ+ communities
• Increasing awareness about Big Tobacco’s targeting tactics
• Providing equitable and tailored cessation resources
• The impact of the FDA’s proposed rule to eliminate menthol cigarettes

...and more.

Check out the conversation:

"Black Pride events were going smoke-free before anyone else was doing it. As far as I know, we were one of the first organizations and group of Prides to say, ‘No, we’re not taking tobacco money, we’re going to create smoke-free zones,’ to help create a healthy environment."

This interview is the latest installment of The Take Down: Unfiltered Conversations About Tobacco – part of our Campaign for the Culture, an initiative focused on uniting, empowering, educating and engaging people of color and other targeted communities around critical healthcare and human rights issues connected to tobacco use. Learn more >>

Sincerely,

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