Why Smokefree?

Boulder Pride has invested itself into the Smokefree movement vigorously. We all know smoking is bad for us. Smokers don't need us to teach them that, anymore than I need someone to teach me that my not-so-minor chocolate addiction is unhealthy. I know I shouldn't, but I still do it. So while our smokefree activism is partially inspired by a desire to help individuals in our community achieve better health, it is not the main inspiration for our passion.

Let's start out with some basic facts. Queer folks are twice as likely to be uninsured as straights. And people who are uninsured are less likely to go to the doctor and therefore less likely to catch life threatening illnesses when they are in the early stages and more easily treated. Queer people are also more likely to smoke at high rates and drink to excess. Smokefree GLBT has a laundry list of some fairly frightening facts. One study done by the Praxis Project indicated that bisexual women are three times more likely to drink to get drunk than straight or lesbian women. So encouraging an active, healthy lifestyle for our community is an important role we can play.

But even more so, smoking is a social justice issue. It's a social justice issue because people who smoke are typically low income and oppressed. Because tobacco companies market to the queer community as consumers but do not respect them as people. Because when we buy tobacco products, we are indirectly funding campaigns and candidates that do not have our best interests at heart.

I attended an anti-smoking conference a few years ago where a native american group presented on the issues of tobacco and it really hit me for the first time what the tobacco companies have done to our country. For many native american groups, tobacco was a sacred herb, used to treat certain ailments in animals and smoked as a community building experience. Big Tobacco took that sacred and personal experience and poured various chemical additives into it to make it more addictive and more profitable. The queer community is just one of the many groups that have been targeted and used by the tobacco industry in their quest for money.

Things to watch for:
June 20 is the Smokefree Cruiser Ride 4 Pride Join with other queers and allies in a bike ride across town, ending at the Saloon and Steakhouse where participants will be taking turns on the mechanical bull!