As cases of lung disease and death resulting from the vaping epidemic continue to sweep across the nation, including the recent death of a 17-year-old male in Bronx, NY – the state’s first vaping-related fatality, truth, the highly effective youth smoking prevention campaign from Truth Initiative®, is kicking off its National Day of Action.
Reality Check youth from Fillmore Central High School took
action today with a truth-sponsored social media campaign titled “Tested on
Humans.” The campaign highlights how
little is known about the long-term effects of e-cigarettes which are still
unregulated, exposing an entire generation to the risk of nicotine addiction
and allowing them to be treated like human guinea pigs.
Just as humans speak out when companies test their products
on animals, Tested on Humans features “King of Pop Culture” Doug the Pug and
other animals speaking out in interactive broadcast and digital content to warn
e-cigarette manufacturers like JUUL not to test a product with unknown effects
on humans.
Fillmore youth customized their campaign by taking selfies
with their own famed pets and posting them on social media using Truth
Instagram stickers and the hashtag #DontTestOnHumans.
“Truth Initiative has a long history of calling out Big
Tobacco for its deadly exploits, and Tested on Humans is the latest example
which exposes just how little is known about the long-term health effects of
e-cigarettes,” said Jonathan Chaffee, Youth Engagement Manager of Tobacco-Free
Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties (TF-CCA). “We join them in
delivering a clear message to JUUL and the entire tobacco industry: the safety
and well-being of Allegany County youth is not for sale.”
