Ahead of this Saturday's  “Cigar Snob” event hosted by the Atlantic City Borgata Casino, Cynthia Hallett, President and CEO of Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights issued a statement.

ANR's Director of Advocacy, Bronson Frick, was at Shreveport City Council’s hearing on May 9^th with other advocates to oppose a proposal which would repeal the city’s smokefree casinos ordinance. For two years, the smokefree law has successfully protected the city’s thousands of casino workers who are primarily black and 50% women. The vote will take place at the next meeting on May 23.

On April 25, together with casino workers fighting for their lives, ANR President and CEO Cynthia Hallett testified before the Rhode Island House Committee on Finance in support of legislation to close the casino smoking loophole in the state’s Clean Indoor Act that leaves thousands exposed to smoke. The bill (H5237 and S438) is expected to have another important hearing soon in the RI Senate. Casinos in the state were successfully non-smoking indoors for nearly two years during COVID.

The Center for Black Health & Equity’s No Menthol Sunday is an opportunity for faith communities to address the detrimental impact tobacco has on Black communities.

ANR former Board member Dr. Nez Henderson will appear Friday, May 19, at a Noon (PST) online event for the West Coast premiere of Lincoln Mondy's sequel to Black Lives/Black Lungs, “The Journey of a Stolen Leaf,” a short documentary which also contains an interview with another ANR former board member, Valerie Yerger. Thank you to the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council for this event.

ANR says: “It is difficult to see how Rivers Casino can be committed to occupant wellness when the property continues to allow smoking indoors.”

A new CDC report finds historically low cigarette smoking rates.
Casinos that allow smoking are turning off an overwhelming majority of potential customers who don’t want to spend time in the smoke.