Brookline bans tobacco sales to people born in the 21st century

In the United States, the city of Brookline has become the first in the country to ban the sale of tobacco products to anyone born on the 21st.^th century. This decision marks a considerable step towards the denormalization of tobacco use and towards the end game strategy, which ultimately aims to eradicate tobacco consumption.[1].

On Monday, July 19, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey approved the state's law aimed at creating a tobacco-free generation in the city of Brookline by banning the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after July 1.^er January 2000.

Brookline, a pioneer in the fight against smoking

The town of Brookline, with a population of nearly 60,000 and located near Boston, has been a pioneer in implementing anti-smoking policies in the past, such as establishing smoke-free spaces to ensure air quality and raising the legal age for purchasing tobacco.

Another step towards a total ban

For the non-governmental organization Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), banning the sale of tobacco products to young people is an effective alternative when banning the sale of tobacco products to the entire population is not a feasible policy. Indeed, in addition to preventing a new generation from falling into tobacco addiction, this ban goes towards denormalizing tobacco consumption, and could increase the motivation of smokers to begin the process of quitting, due to a greater scarcity of tobacco products. In the United States, however, some cities have already embarked on a complete ban on sales. This is notably the case in Beverly Hills, where the sale of cigarettes, chewing tobacco cigars, hookah tobacco and even e-cigarettes has been prohibited since 1^er January 2021[2].

Supporting smokers in their withdrawal

According to ASH, the city of Brookline should increase its support for people who want to quit smoking. Indeed, the tobacco epidemic lies primarily with manufacturers, not smokers. Smokers remain the primary victims of their smoking, which is largely encouraged by manufacturers' marketing campaigns, which primarily target younger generations.

Keywords: United States, Brookline, Prohibition, 2000

[1] Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), Brookline, MA Becomes 1st City in the US to Ban Tobacco Sales to Anyone Born in the 21st Century, 07/19/2021, (accessed 07/20/2021)

[2] CNN, Beverly Hills to ban the sale of nearly all tobacco products. It's the first US city to institute such a sweeping crackdown, 05/06/2019, (accessed 20/07/2021)

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