BY JACKSON CHEN | Students from the Upper West Side’s Smith School took a stand against teenage smoking as well as the saturation of tobacco outlets in their neighborhood on Kick Butts Day.
On March 16, students from grades seven to 12 at the West 86th Street private school expressed their anti-smoking sentiments in creative posters that were judged in a competition hosted by NYC Smoke-Free. The students’ depictions varied from a beguiling bodega owner to a chemical breakdown of a cigarette and a map view of the 40 or so places that sell cigarettes near their school.
Top prize went to an advisory group facilitated by teacher Allison Block that included Rachel Mitchell, Samantha Zachar, and Maddy Tuten, who were recognized for their distinctive approach in criticizing smoking.
“We thought a lot of people were going to focus on the places around us that sell tobacco,” explained Tuten, a senior in the group. “We wanted to show it’s not a singular action, it’s something that affects everyone.”
The group of three students created a poster they titled “What About Me?,” showing a haze of smoke surrounding younger members of a family of smokers.
“The people I know that smoke, it’s kind of a self-destructive behavior,” said Zachar, an 11th grader in the winning group. “So it’s kind of playing to their side of — you want to hurt yourself, but you got the other people surrounding you and how it affects them.”
According to school counselor Marissa Allen, Kick Butts Day and the poster competition helped strengthen students’ awareness of smoking’s dangers by challenging them to interpret the issue through their own lens.
“Our students are super artistic and creative, and I feel like their personalities really came out in the posters,” said Allen.
The poster effort is part of a broader commitment the school has to create adult-led advisory groups where students get together with peers and advisors to discuss real-world issues like healthy habits, stress management, and drug and alcohol awareness.
With the school having completed a Drug and Alcohol Awareness Week, NYC Smoke-Free’s efforts for Kick Butts Day aimed at building student awareness about tobacco industries and their advertising aimed at teens. In January, elected officials joined anti-smoking advocates and local high school students at the Goddard Riverside Community Center on Columbus Avenue at 88th Street in a press conference calling for an end to electronic cigarette marketing that appeals to youth.
According to the Smith School’s vice principal, Daniel Madden, the March 16 event was not only a way for students to express their disapproval of smoking, but also part of a bigger effort to get them to recognize opportunities to become a voice in the community.
“Another area we’re trying to develop in this school is considering and thinking about their stake in the community and how their choices affect those around them,” he explained.
The students’ efforts garnered the attention of Upper West Side City Councilmember Helen Rosenthal, who recalled that she was disturbed by the advertising from big tobacco companies when she was younger.
“Our kids deserve to grow up free from tobacco industry marketing and promotion,” said Rosenthal. “The Smith School students are helping to make that reality in our community.”
