On Saturday, April 1, 2017, youth advocates from Canada and the U.S. teamed up to tell Hollywood, their elected officials, and the people of Toronto that they are no fool to the dangers of smoking in movies.
Jointly organized by the Ontario Coalition for Smoke Free Movies and Reality Check New York, 150 young people, warmly wrapped in gray scarves, hit the streets around Toronto Metro Hall to educate people on the dangers of on-screen smoking, as well as get them to sign a petition to give an R (US) or 18A (Canada) rating to future movies with smoking.
According to a 2014 report from the Surgeon General, giving an R rating to future movies with smoking would be expected to reduce the number of teen smokers by nearly 1 in 5 (18%) and prevent 1 million deaths from smoking among teens and children alive today.
(Reported by the Ontario Coalition and Reality Check NY)