Conscious Choice: The Smoking Ban Bandwagon

March 2004

The Smoking Ban Bandwagon

Who's on it and why?

by Terry Loncaric

Aaron Doeppers is leading the smoke-free fight in Arlington Heights — to save his 4-year-old daughter and other children from the dangers of second-hand smoke. The 31-year-old Arlington Heights father and activist says he is tired of taking his daughter to a local café and worrying if she will choke on the cigarette smoke. Even though he sits in the so-called "no smoking section," the smoke wafts "like a chimney" into his daughter’s face. "I call it the smoking section and the second-hand smoking section," Doeppers says. "It kills me to see kids in these smoky restaurants."

And that is why Doeppers and a growing number of citizens are taking up the battle for smoke-free communities — a fight that began last November when Wilmette approved Illinois’ toughest anti-smoking measure. The battle cry for smoke-free communities sounded last summer when Skokie became the first Illinois suburb to ban public smoking. Not as tough as Wilmette’s ban, Skokie’s law exempts bars not attached to restaurants. But the more restrictive Wilmette ordinance that takes effect July 1 will prohibit indoor smoking in restaurants, bars, bowling alleys, work places, country clubs and other public places. Only one business, a tobacco shop in Wilmette, will permit smoking.

Even though smoking is still allowed in Chicago, and in most parts of Illinois, anti-smoking coalitions are organizing aggressive campaigns to spread their message in the suburbs, with the hope of following California’s statewide smoking ban, and eventually making Illinois a smoke-free state.

And now that Skokie and Wilmette have paved the way for smoke-free communities, Arlington Heights, Evanston and Oak Park are going to consider smoke-free ordinances. These three communities are among 19 Illinois municipalities that have the legislative power to enact clean indoor air ordinances.

But the struggle is just beginning. As activists in Evanston and Oak Park circulate petitions and Arlington Heights officials schedule the first public hearings, emotions are sure to flare over the right to smoke versus the right to breathe clean air. While it may seem like a clear-cut public health concern, restaurant and bar owners argue they will lose revenue and smokers feel they are relinquishing their rights. Smoke-free activists will make a strong case, too, that Illinois has a dismal record in protecting the rights of non-smokers and in educating smokers about the dangers of tobacco.

The Trend Stops Here

Even though 55 percent of smokers try to quit every day, the powerful tobacco industry spends $17 million a day promoting a knowingly addictive product. Even though 420,000 smokers die every year from this lethal product, Illinois has dragged its heels while other states became smoke-free.

Illinois spends $12 million in tobacco education, yet the Centers for Disease Control recommend Illinois budget at least $65 million to counter the tobacco industry’s alluring and dangerous marketing. As evidence mounts that second-hand smoke is lethal, hundreds of municipalities have gone smoke-free. Los Angeles and New York took the lead. Now, many major cities including San Diego, Boulder, Tempe, Dallas and Boston are all smoke-free. And some states, like New York, California and Massachusetts, have gone completely smoke-free.

Helena, Montana, one of the most dramatic cases, brought back a smoking ban after the number of patients admitted to emergency rooms for heart attacks increased by 60 percent — a number that was tracked scientifically by the American College of Cardiology.

"We’re clearly behind the times," says Joel Africk, the executive director for the Chicago Office of the American Lung Association, and a leader in the smoke-free movement. "It’s surprising, because the health evidence is so clear and the economic evidence is even crumbling that smoke-free environments are bad for the economy."

Africk, a Wilmette resident, led the well-organized fight for a smoke-free Wilmette and had the support of 75 community and health organizations. He took up this campaign because of the success of other smoke-free communities. Africk says New York, a state that has been smoke-free for 10 years, has already experienced a 14 percent decline in lung cancer. "What they’ve found around the country is the health effects are obvious. If people want to stop smoking, the best motivation to stop smoking in your workplace is to go smoke-free."

Africk says a growing mound of evidence also establishes the dangers of second-hand smoke. The National Cancer Institute estimates 65,000 people are killed every year by secondhand smoke. And Africk’s own organization, the American Lung Association says the number one trigger of asthma attacks is second-hand smoke. "The last time I looked at the Constitution it didn’t say people have a right to smoke," Africk remarks. "The law is very clear. My right stops when what I do causes harm to someone else.

"The important thing about the invisible carcinogens in second-hand smoke is you don’t even known if you’re inhaling them," Africk continues. "Just because it doesn’t smell smoky doesn’t mean there aren’t carcinogens in the air."

And even though there has been resistance to smoking bans from restaurants and tavern owners, Africk says businesses are pushing the panic button. He says in New York and San Francisco, two cities famous for their restaurants, sales revenue actually increased after smoking bans were enacted. "The day after the restaurants went smoke-free, the lights still stayed on and the food probably tasted better," Africk remarks.

Yes, and Then There’s Chicago

Some activists even believe going smoke-free will attract business by creating a cleaner and more appealing, family-friendly environment. And for those very compelling reasons, the Oak Park Board of Health has followed the example of Skokie and recommended the community adopt a smoke-free ordinance to protect the health of its residents. "We believe people ought to have the choice to go to any restaurant they wish without smoke," says Mark Peysakhovich, a spokesman for the Campaign for a Smoke-Free Oak Park. "People ought to also have the choice to work without signing their death warrant."

Peysakhovich believes smokers will still support Oak Park businesses even if they can’t smoke. "If people can sit through a flight for hours without smoking and if they can sit through a movie without smoking, then I think they can sit through a meal without smoking. If people realize they can go without smoking for a few hours then they might even think about quitting. This will be another nail in the coffin of the tobacco industry."

In Evanston, support is apparently growing for a smoke-free community, fueled by a well-organized campaign. "We’ve got smokers, cancer survivors, people with asthma and just ordinary citizens who are interested in banning smoking," says Terra Levin, a spokeswoman for the Evanston Citizens for Clean Indoor Air. "I think we’re following a similar lead to what happened in California," adds Levin, also the regional director for the North Shore Office of the American Cancer Society. "The smoke-free movement happened at the grassroots level, and when people see the health benefits, it can happen in the entire state."

And Doeppers, who is involved in the Arlington Heights Smoke-Free Coalition, says his strategy is to counter "the propaganda of the tobacco industry" by showing the obvious benefits of going smoke-free. Even though Doeppers runs an educational organization that helps people stop smoking — the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids — he is not, he insists, pushing for a prohibition of tobacco. "Imagine trying to ban a product that millions of people are addicted to? How successful would that be?"

Doeppers, and others in the smoke-free movement, say they are simply protecting the health of their communities. And even smokers want that, he says. "What we’re doing is saving lives," Doeppers asserts. "There’s no doubt about the impact of second-hand smoke. It’s been studied for decades and decades. I’d like to see my daughter live in a smoke-free community."

There is strong evidence that smoking bans work. Lowell Huckleberry, the Skokie director of health, says Skokie is discovering what other communities have already learned when they became smoke-free. "There have been quite a few studies that having a ban on smoking contributes to a decline in smoking," Huckleberry says. "I think there has been a high level of compliance in Skokie, and very few complaints. I think the Board of Health is very pleased it has taken this step and even provided a little competition to Wilmette and other communities."

Now that other communities are following Skokie and Wilmette’s lead, Africk hopes for a domino effect. He believes if the suburbs go smoke-free, Chicago — long embattled over this issue — may finally yield.

After several attempts to reach Mayor Richard Daley’s office for a comment on the possibility of a smoking ban, Daley’s office declined comment, saying the "Mayor was out of town and could not be reached." Alderman Ed Burke’s office, however, confirmed that Burke, an ardent champion for non-smokers’ rights, will continue to push for passage of "a sweeping ordinance" that would finally make Chicago smoke-free.

"There’s certainly a groundswell of support for this to happen in Chicago," says Doeppers. "The only problem is Daley seems to be standing in the way. I think he’s health conscious, and he’s had his own health issues, but I think he’s been very influenced by the Illinois Restaurant Association. He’s not really against us or for us. He just wishes the issue would go away."

But activists are ready to raise their own smoke, as they take their case to the people, and pressure politicians to move forward on his long-neglected issue. "A small amount of opposition exists from the business community, but it’s not gonna stop us," says a defiant Doeppers. "There is overwhelming support for smoke-free communities. It’s an issue whose time has come."

Terry Loncaric is a Chicago-based writer specializing in spirituality, travel, the arts and social issues.

Smokers Have Rights, Too

Now if you think the decision for communities to go smoke-free is obvious, then stay tuned. Smokers have rights, too. And the government has not yet banned the sale of tobacco. The same government that warns people not to smoke also subsidizes tobacco farmers and makes it possible for people to become addicted to a dangerous product.

Clearly, there is a cloud of contradictions swirling in the smoke-free debate. More than just a health issue, the question of where and when an individual can light up involves questions of personal liberty and how far a democratic society can, and should, go to protect its citizens.

Even in Skokie, where a partial smoking ban was adopted, the issue was not so clear-cut. Taverns not attached to restaurants were permitted to allow smoking, a decision made to protect the character of Skokie’s neighborhood bars. Lowell Huckleberry, Skokie’s director of health, says Skokie officials decided to allow smoking in bars because that’s what bar owners, and even members of the community, desired. "People wanted to have places where they could stop in for a beer and a smoke," Huckleberry says.

And not everyone in the Chicago Suburbs is jumping on the smokefree bandwagon. Beth Lambrecht was the only trustee among seven Wilmette elected officials to vote against a public smoking ban. And Lambrecht, who owns a jewelry store in Wilmette, doesn’t even smoke. Nor she does allow smoking in her business.

Lambrecht says she believes in free choice. And that is why she voted against the smoking ban. "I have asthma and I’m not a proponent of smoking, but smoking is still a legal activity," Lambrecht declares. "I think people have a choice of whether they want to go into a business where there is smoking; I don’t feel we should be micro-managing people’s lives," she relates.

She believes Wilmette may have overstepped its bounds with a blanket-smoking ban. "You hear people who are non-smokers say,‘Finally, we non-smokers have a say,’ ...but they’ve done it at the expense of the smokers. In my opinion, when you start to regulate personal behavior, I think we have opened ourselves to a slippery slope. Where does it stop?"

Cindy Falzer feels a smoking ban is not necessary because in Wilmette most restaurants have already voluntarily banned smoking. Falzer and her husband, Art, own C.J. Arthur’s and the Wilmette Depot, two of the last smoking restaurants in Wilmette.

She worries that business will suffer because C.J.’s is also a lounge famous for its karaoke nights and smoky crowd. "I have people come in for karaoke because they know they can smoke," Falzer says. "That’s where I make my profits. I’m not making profits on the $3 hot dogs."

Falzer, a smoker herself, says her customers are so angry that they have even threatened to "light up" as an act of protest on July 1st, when the smoking ban will be enforced. "Supposedly, we’re [Wilmette residents] one of the most educated communities on the North Shore. You would think the most educated people could make their own choice about where they want to eat dinner and where they want to smoke.

"I don’t think the government should be infringing upon people’s rights, or telling people how to run their businesses," Falzer continues. "If people want to smoke, let them go to the 90 percent of restaurants that allow it. That’s the nice thing about freedom. Everybody has their own niche."

And if a smoking ban should ever hit Chicago, Todd Gunderson, a managing partner of Ditka’s, says it would be a disaster for his restaurant, known for its cigar bar. "We’re here to take care of our guests, and some of our guests want to smoke, and that’s their choice," Gunderson says. "If the smoke was so heavy it made my customers uncomfortable, I would take steps to change that."

But if he is forced to ban smoking in his restaurant, Gunderson feels it would create ill will among his customers. "It puts us in a horrible position," he says. "We would have to be the smoke police. Are we supposed to take the cigarettes right out of people’s hands?"

Colleen McShane, president of the Illinois Restaurant Association, says the association opposes smoking bans because it takes away the flexibility of the restaurant owner and hurts business. "I agree the smell of smoke is a nuisance," McShane comments. "And I’m not going to sit here and say smoke is good or bad, but I don’ t think government needs to come in and mandate this. I think it’s a business decision."

And McShane feels there is hypocrisy in smoking bans. "If it’s in the interest of the public to stop smoking, then why is this product still available?"— TL

Be An Activist:

For Chicago, send automatic emails to Mayor Daley and Chicago Aldermen

Campaign for a Smoke-Free Oak Park; 800-691-6027, Ext. 6020 (Includes directory of community leaders)

Evanston Citizens for Clean Indoor Air; 847-328-3692

Illinois Coalition Against Tobacco: An umbrella group for 130 health organizations and anti-smoking groups

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