Alaska Kids to 'Kick Butts' on March 18

State Leaders Urged to Support Tobacco Prevention Initiatives

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Mar 13, 2015, 12:25 ET

WASHINGTON, March 13, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Kids in Alaska will stand up to Big Tobacco on March 18 as they join thousands of young people nationwide for the 20^th annual Kick Butts Day. More than 1,000 events are planned nationwide for this day of youth activism, sponsored by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. (See below for a list of local events.)

On Kick Butts Day, kids encourage their peers to stay tobacco-free, demand that tobacco companies stop marketing deadly, addictive products to them and encourage elected officials to do more to reduce youth tobacco use.

This year, Kick Butts Day is focusing attention on how the tobacco industry still spends huge sums on marketing and is adopting new strategies to reach young customers. Nationwide, tobacco companies spend $8.8 billion a year – one million dollars every hour – to market tobacco products. In Alaska, tobacco companies spend $18.5 million annually on marketing efforts. The industry's tactics that entice kids include:

Splashy ads in magazines with large youth readership, such as Sports Illustrated, ESPN the Magazine and Rolling Stone.
Widespread advertising and price discounts in stores, which make tobacco products appealing and affordable to kids.
New, sweet-flavored tobacco products such as small cigars and electronic cigarettes. The latest surveys show that youth use of e-cigarettes has skyrocketed.

In addition to organizing events, kids are standing up to the tobacco industry on social media through the #NotAReplacement selfie campaign. The tobacco industry's own documents reveal that they have long targeted kids as "replacement smokers" for the more than 480,000 people their products kill each year in the United States. Kids are taking selfies to say they're not a replacement and sharing the photos on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with the #NotAReplacement hashtag. (view the #NotAReplacement selfie gallery)

"On Kick Butts Day, kids stand up and reject Big Tobacco's manipulative marketing," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "We can make the next generation tobacco-free and end the tobacco epidemic for good. Elected officials can help reach that goal by standing with kids and supporting proven strategies to prevent youth tobacco use, including higher tobacco taxes, strong smoke-free laws and prevention programs."

In Alaska, tobacco use claims 600 lives and costs $438 million in health care bills each year. Currently, 10.6 percent of Alaska's high school students smoke.

On Kick Butts Day, kids engage in creative events that range from small classroom activities about the harmful ingredients in cigarettes to large rallies at state capitols.

In Alaska, activities include:

From March 16 to 20, basketball teams and supporters from southeast Alaska will celebrate Kick Butts Day during the Gold Medal Basketball Tournament at Juneau Douglas High School with various activities, including a memorial wall, #NotAReplacement campaign and tabling. Time: 12:30 PM. Location: 1639 Glacier Avenue, Juneau. Contact: Hilary Zander (630) 987-9873.

On March 17, youth from the Two Rivers Youth Center at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson will hand out pledges at various sporting events and create a graffiti wall. Time: 4:00 PM. Location: Building 267 6^th Street, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. Contact: Kandis Kile (907) 384-1508.

Students from Delta Junction High School and Fort Greely Middle School will hang a banner that outlines the toll of tobacco in the state and will have a punching bag for youth to "kick the habit." Time: 9:30 AM. Location: 1655 N. Clearwater Avenue, Delta Junction. Contact: Tom Gilbert (907) 803-5678.

Students from the University of Alaska Anchorage will announce its transition to a smoke- and tobacco-free campus by the end of 2015 and celebrate with food, information tables, a pledge wall and performances. Time: 11 AM. Location: 3211 Providence Drive, Anchorage. Contact: Joy Mapaye (907) 786-4195.

All events are on March 18 unless otherwise indicated. For a full list of Kick Butts Day activities in Alaska, visit www.kickbuttsday.org/map. Additional information about tobacco, including state-by-state statistics, can be found at www.tobaccofreekids.org.

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SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids