Missouri Kids to 'Kick Butts' on March 18

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Mar 13, 2015, 12:00 ET

State Leaders Urged to Support Tobacco Prevention Initiatives

WASHINGTON, March 13, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Kids in Missouri will stand up to Big Tobacco on March 18 and other days 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 Missouri, tobacco companies spend $328.6 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 Missouri, tobacco use claims 11,000 lives and costs $3.03 billion in health care bills each year. Currently, an alarming 14.9 percent of Missouri'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 Missouri, activities include:

On March 17, youth from northwest Missouri and northeast Kansas will play in a dodgeball tournament at the St. Joseph Rec Center. In addition to the tournament, the kids will take part in several anti-tobacco-themed contests. Time: 6 PM. Location: 2701 South West Parkway, Saint Joseph. Contact: Nancy Taylor (816) 244-9291.

On March 18, youth in the Saint Louis area will participate in an event at the MidCounty YMCA in Brentwood that will teach them about the toxins and poisons in cigarettes and encourage them to stay tobacco-free. Time: 3 PM. Location: 1900 Urban Drive, Brentwood. Contact: Sophie Bernstein (314) 495-6209.

During the week of April 20, students at Odessa High School will decorate the school and announce facts about the dangers of tobacco each day. The students will hold a kickball tournament with information about the negative effects of tobacco use. Time: 9 AM. Location: 713 S. 3^rd Street, Odessa. Contact: Kelsey Smith (816) 633-5533.

For a full list of Kick Butts Day activities in Missouri, 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