10 Steps to a Smoke-free Guilford
Everyone deserves a breath of fresh air! In North Carolina a state law actually prohibits local communities from setting their own policies to protect citizens from secondhand smoke. The Smokefree Guilford Coalition (SFG) is a volunteer-driven, working team of individuals with the goal of promoting 100% smokefree environments through advocacy and education. It is a separate entity from the Guilford County Tobacco Use Prevention Coalition, although it works in close partnership with this, and other community groups Their primary goal is to promote smokefree environments through restoring control to local communities to set their own smokefree standards.
Monthly meetings are open to individuals or representatives of groups who support SFG’s goals and strategies. For information on the next meeting, or to contact the SFG Chair through e-mail at smokefreeguilford@yahoo.com or voicemail at 336-288-8886.
For more information on this, and other North Carolina policy issues related to tobacco, visit the North Carolina Alliance for Health.
If you would like to do more than just wish for more smokefree venues in Guilford County, here’s the place to start.
What can I do to make a difference?
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Try to frequent smokefree venues and let them know you appreciate their policy. |
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Advocate for a smokefree policy in your place of work that limits smoking to areas at least 50 feet from entrances. Also, ask your health insurance carrier whether they offer benefits to cover proven smoking cessation therapies. |
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Request that coaches not use any form of tobacco in front of children and that spectator stands, fields, and arenas become tobacco-free areas. |
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Ask your favorite family entertainment venues to strengthen their smokefree policies. Recently Jamestown, NC pool deck went smokefree, and Wet and Wild/Emerald Pointe in Greensboro, NC strengthened their policy to limit smoking to only designated areas, and Greensboro Parks and Recreation prohibited tobacco use in playgrounds and athletic fields due to the efforts of local teens. Write a letter to the managers of these and other facilities with strong policies commending them for protecting your family. |
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Ask your PTA to remind parents regularly to set a good example by maintaining a tobacco-free standard at school! Beginning fall 2008 all North Carolina school districts will be 100% tobacco free, for everyone, 24/7! You can find out more at http://www.nctobaccofreeschools.com. |
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Learn more about preemption at http://www.no-smoke.org/ and http://www.protectlocalcontrol.org/ |
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Look for opportunities to speak with local groups with whom you are affiliated regarding this issue. Write short pieces for community newsletters, and work with other groups interested in the public health, to speak out on this issue. |
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Attend the public comments portions of open meetings to speak about the need to restore local control over indoor smoking policy. |
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Write a letter to state or local elected officials to let them know that you are aware of the public health dangers of secondhand smoke, and you want local communities to have the authority to make local rules and policies regarding public exposure to smoke. |
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Attend a meeting of the Smokefree Guilford Coalition. Contact 336-641-6000 or smokefreeguilford@gmail.com |
Tell the manager of your favorite restaurant or entertainment spot that you would come more often if it was smokefree. Write it on your bill. 
Ask those who work with youth to maintain a smokefree/tobacco free atmosphere voluntarily. 
Support your Guilford County Schools to enforce their 100% Tobacco Free School Policy. Ask your principal if they offer Alternatives to Suspension classes for those students who violate the policy, and if they regularly enforce these rules. If you observe visitors and parents smoking on school property, remind them of the policy, or notify school security or administration. 
Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper periodically educating the public about the dangers of secondhand smoke and the nature of preemptive legislation that limits local control over this public health policy. 
