World No Tobacco Day, May 31 2010: women as target of the tobacco industry

 The World Health Organization has chosen to focus the communication for this WNTD about the marketing of tobacco products to women. Read the press release and see all the posters.

Judith Mackay at USC: The Global Tobacco Epidemic: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (2010)

Judith Mackay delivered this lecture at USC on January 19, 2010.

Judith Wilkenfeld: She took on the tobacco industry (2004)

Judith Wilkenfeld died on May 24, 2007. She was the Vice President for International Affairs for the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. She played a major role in the negociation of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Here is a podcast recorded during the World Conference for Cancer Organizations in Dublin, in November 2004, where she explains the FCTC and all the advocacy work she helped organize. LISTEN (7 min)

Claude Gonot: Commencer à 15 ans ça tue la voix (2007) Starting to smoke at 15 killed my voice

 Claude Gonot started smoking when she was 15. She had a cancer of the throat when she was 43. She had a laryngectomy. Her testimony was produced in 2007 by the French National Committee for Tobacco Control (CNCT). On YouTube (in French)

Michèle: It Could Have Been Avoided (2007)

Co-produced by TF1 and the CNCT the simple and poignant testimony (30 sec) of Michèle (63) who never smoked but has lung cancer because of her exposure to tobacco smoke. On YouTube (in French)

Zita Roberts: If I could stop one person (2006)

Zita Roberts, a mother of 3 had lung cancer because of her smoking. She testified in a series of TV ads ( Sept/Oct 2006) produced in Western Australia with the tagline: quitting is hard, not quitting is harder. The campaign was also aired in 2007 in New South Wales. Her story (pdf format). WATCH

Zita died in February 2007, she was only 38.

Heather Crowe: I am dying of lung cancer from secondhand smoke (2002)

Heather died in Ottawa on May 21, 2006. She had lung cancer because of her exposure to secondhand smoke as a waitress. Watch on of her famous clips.
 Thank you so much Heather for your courage, your persistence, your commitment.
The Heather Crowe Campaign site.

Barb Tarbox: Is it fair? No (2002)

Barb Tarbox, from Alberta, died of lung cancer when she was 41 years old, on May 18, 2003. She told her story in a series of very courageous and touching TV ads that I could no longer find but there is this powerful short documentary on YouTube.

Christy Turlington: Smoking is ugly (2000)

Model Christy Turlington launched with the CDC the campaignSmoking is Ugly. There are 4 TV ads including one where the talks about her efforts to quit and her Dad's early death of lung cancer. I could not access the ads on the CDC's site here is one on YouTube.

Pam Laffin: I can't breathe (1999)

Pam Laffin's story. Here is one TV spot. Pam died on october 31, 2000.

An interview (pdf format)

The campaign explained by Greg Connolly (Massachusetts Department of Health). 

Janet Sackman's Testimony (1994)

Janet Sackman is a throat cancer survivor and a former model for Lucky Strike. In several TV ads she told how she was induced into smoking by a tobacco executive.  Her powerful testimony was aired in many  countries. This version is from Quit  Victoria  (Australia). The campaign was aired in 1994.  WATCH

Why this tribute?

When I started thinking about the theme of this 2010 World No Tobacco Day I remembered the many women tobacco control advocates I had the privilege to cyber-interview and also the many courageous women who told in a video format the very personal story of their battle against the diseases tobacco inflicted upon them.

On this blog I have posted 8 such testimonies from Canada, the US, Australia and France and also a recent presentation given by Judith Mackay and a podcast of a presentation given in 2004 by Judy Wilkenfeld.

There are many sheroes who stood up and continue to stand up to raise the awareness about the gigantic pains caused by smoking and the aggressive marketing of the tobacco industry.

This is but a very small token of their contribution.