GYC 2013-14 "Stand Up, Speak Out"

The Bear River GYC is ready to go for another year of advocacy. This year's theme will be "Stand Up, Speak Out". Leadership has put together some awesome advocacy events for the year. The main focus will be on addressing alcohol and tobacco issues, and more specifically E-cigarettes. GYC will have the opportunity to present to the staff at their school and in front of the school board in an effort to educate them on the need for a more comprehensive alcohol and tobacco policy. GYC will also work to present positive norms at each school to let students know most of them are making healthy choices. It should be an awesome year!

FYI: We have added a resource tab at the top of the blog that will hopefully provide some useful resources. There is also now a calendar tab that lists when each district meeting will be held. Other activities will hopefully be added to the calendar as they are scheduled.

The Event!

Radio interview, newspaper photo, and a whole lot of fun. The Bear River GYC completed its tobacco advocacy event with great success. We've Seen Enough, and we were able to let our community know we don't want to see any more tobacco advertising.

GYC waving to passing cars, standing outside local gas station.

Advertising at gas station convenience stores is one of the last places the tobacco industry is able to advertise. They use this space well, to attract young new smokers. Despite not being able to use many mass media outlets like T.V. or billboards to advertise, the tobacco industry uses retail outlets extremely well. Teens are most likely to smoke the 3 most heavily advertised brands of cigarettes, and most report seeing tobacco advertising all or most of the time when visiting a convenience store.

GYC walking down Main Street with their chains and banner.

Students of the Bear River GYC gathered outside a local convenience store with their signature chains of support and banners with the "We've Seen Enough" message on them. The group spent about an hour walking around town, past some of the major convenience outlets, raising awareness about tobacco advertising. The GYC collected enough interest that members of the community called the local paper to see what was going on. This was a great event to combine all the hard work students had put in all year long. We look forward to the day when we no longer have to be exposed to tobacco advertising.

Why We Advocate

The Bear River GYC has been working hard all year to prepare for an advocacy event against tobacco advertising. I know what you are thinking, but tobacco companies cannot advertise anymore, so what are you advocating against? It is true that the tobacco industry has been limited greatly in its promotion efforts, however, they still exist. Have you ever stopped to fill your car up with gas and noticed a Camel or Marlboro sign, or stopped in at a convenience store for a drink and a snack and noticed a huge display of cigarettes? The tobacco industry uses these methods effectively to attract young new smokers.

The 2012 Surgeon General's Report clearly outlines how successful tobacco advertising can be. While the tobacco industry continues to claim that its marketing is not targeted at teens, the majority of smokers started smoking before age 18. In fact 9 out of 10 smokers started smoking before they reached that milestone. How effective is advertising you might ask, sure kids start young, but that does not mean advertisements are driving use. Well more than 80% of underage smokers, smoke the three most heavily advertised brands. Hows that for proof? Not only that but 2/3 of teens report seeing tobacco advertising all or most of the time when they visit convenience stores.

The report goes on to mention how new tobacco products often appeal to youth. New spit-less tobacco is easy to hide while using, many cigarette-sized cigars come in candy and fruit flavors, and the industry driven myth that smoking makes you thin, all appeal to youth. Look at the package and coloring of new products, who do you think that appeals to?

Due to these findings and the lack of policies and enforcement of current policies, the Bear River GYC has taken a stand against tobacco advertising. We have collected over 3,400 pledges from individuals in our community in support of our efforts and we plan to display them in front of local stores to gain even more support against tobacco advertising. Tobacco advertising is there, it is effective, and We've Seen Enough!

Pictures are Worth a Thousand Words

If a picture is worth a thousand words, what is this picture saying? Tobacco advertising is sneaky and effective. This picture was snapped while driving through Logan, Utah on Main Street right in plain view. Think of what is being said here, "look new low tobacco prices", right below the ever raising gas prices. "So, while you may struggle to fill your car up, come in and pick up some cheap tobacco".

You may not think a sign like this is going to attract new smokers, but think about it, many if not a majority of Logan residents will walk or drive by this sign at some point during any given week. What do they learn? They learn that tobacco is now cheaper than it was, they learn that tobacco is sold at that location, and maybe they learn that, "oh, its being advertised right in front of me so it must be OK to try". Maybe non of this happens and it really is ineffective advertising. The Bear River GYC is working hard to document advertisements like this to build community support to stop tobacco advertising, because it is effective and We Have Seen Enough!

Important Minute!

As the first quarter comes to an end the Bear River GYC has accomplished a lot. GYC members have definitely been “the voice” in their respected communities. As we approach our district meeting on December 20, 2012 we want to remind everyone to either complete the online evaluation forms for the first three steps, or bring completed evaluation forms to the meeting. It is very important that we receive these evaluation forms at or before our district meeting. We will take a minute to collect any paperwork that is brought to the meeting. We have conveniently scheduled our district meeting before the end of the Mayan calendar to ensure all paperwork can be collected. Thank you to those of you who have already taken a few minutes to complete the evaluation forms online.

Now that you have been reminded about the paperwork, take a minute to reflect on the first quarter GYC accomplishments. In the first quarter of the year GYC groups were established at schools throughout Cache, Logan, and Box Elder school districts. These GYC groups volunteered at the annual Red Ribbon Run to be drug free, established an anonymoustips.com account to combat bullying and drug use, and collected “We’ve Seen Enough” tobacco and alcohol advertising signature cards. These signature cards will be used later to show the support the GYC has gained against tobacco and alcohol advertising.

To celebrate these first quarter accomplishments, the GYC leadership has planned a fun district meeting filled with minute games and hot cocoa. We will also have the pleasure to hear from Camille Roundy from the Utah Department of Health and Jill Parker of the Bear River Health Department. Camille will address tobacco-advertising laws while Jill will take a minute to provide a short training on social media. We look forward to seeing each of you there.