(The following is part of a discussion of the SGA’s proposed smoking ban at The University of Alabama)
“It’s a personal choice” – the phrase that is so quickly adopted by the affected party whenever personal rights and freedoms appear to be in danger. It is this same outcry by the same population of smokers that is fallen back upon each time an amendment to the current smoking policy is hinted at. It has been beat into the head of every citizen in this country that smoking cigarettes is bad for your health.
After all, over 443,000 deaths each year (17.6 percent of total deaths, according to the CDC) are attributed to smoking, so surely all smokers at this stage are aware of what they are getting into. The focus of this article, then, is not to warn current smokers of the rampant harm they are causing their bodies, but instead to represent the interests of those who inadvertently suffer from smokers’ actions.
How often is it that you find yourself walking down the sidewalk behind an individual smoking a cigarette on your way to class? Or entering into a building, waiting at a bus stop, or enjoying lunch in the Ferg plaza within a close radius of a lit cigarette? These situations are often discarded as mere annoyances in your day, simply an unpleasant odor emitted by a fellow student who is just trying to satiate a craving.
If only it were so insignificant in reality. Of the smoking deaths stated above, some 49,000 are attributed to secondhand smoke exposure. Over 11 percent of smoking deaths are incurred by individuals who have never smoked a day in their lives. Five times as many Americans die due to secondhand smoke than drunk driving incidents. According to this data, 2 percent of the overall population will die from secondhand smoke if the current trend remains. To put this into perspective, statistically 672 of the students currently enrolled at the University will ultimately perish due to exposure to smoke caused by other individuals. These are best friends, roommates, and professors that are put at risk everyday due to an inadequate policy here at the University.
But enough about the numbers – those are too scientific, too concrete. What of the physical impact that the act of smoking has on our campus everyday? When disposing of normal waste such as bottles, wrappings and newspapers, the proper procedure is to place it into an appropriate trash/recycling receptacle. To heedlessly throw it on the ground would be blatantly disrespectful not only to the wonderful staff employed at the University, but also to the fellow students who you share the grounds with.
Why, then, is it socially acceptable to flick discarded non-biodegradable cigarette butts onto the sidewalk, into the bushes, or among the grass of the Quad? There are numerous ashtrays around campus, but most seem to simply ignore these sanitation containers. The result is an eyesore to the campus image, and a blight to the physical properties of the University that our groundskeeping crew work so hard to maintain. It is difficult to fully comprehend the magnitude of this litter problem, so I implore you to do some personal investigating.
On your way to class, take a few minutes to look not at your phone, but at the ground and count the number of cigarette butts you encounter. If you wake up today in an especially brave mood, begin counting as you cross in front of B.B. Comer through the Crimson Promenade. The number you count may astound you.
The most compelling argument, however, may not come from health facts or littered lawns, but from our football-stunted neighbor to the southeast. Auburn University will eliminate all smoking on their campus come August. That’s right, Auburn’s campus has progressed beyond that of our own in terms of health and wellness. And they are not alone. In fact, seven of the members of the SEC will be smoke-free by August, with another two currently considering such a change.
It is up to the students of this University to make a change. While I am sure smokers are not malignant in their intentions, the fact stands that they are still harming other students who want nothing of it. You have the choice to strike that lighter and inhale from a cigarette, but the student standing next to you has no choice when he involuntarily inhales your fumes, and must suffer because of it.
Zack McMillian is a sophomore majoring in management information systems.
Click the link below to read the opposing viewpoint:
Administrators banning use of tobacco would only be self-serving, ineffective
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Student organization to host 5k to raise scholarship funds
