New York City, NY: La Tanisha Wright Testifies Against Big Tobacco — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:01name uh
2. 0:04Brandon
3. 0:06kitster and Ester Z you're on
4. 0:10Deck go ahead I'm sorry good afternoon
5. 0:14it is a pleasure to be here today I am
6. 0:16the founder and director of follow the
7. 0:18signs I am also a former big tobacco
8. 0:20marketing
9. 0:21manager the tobacco industry spends
10. 0:23nearly a million dollars an hour to
11. 0:25Market tobacco in the United States
12. 0:27without tobacco andry support WEA often
13. 0:30cannot afford to provide ongoing
14. 0:31discounting to their customers the
15. 0:34tobacco industry offers retailers strict
16. 0:36retail contracts providing them with
17. 0:38ongoing discounting advertising and
18. 0:40other contract incentives in exchange
19. 0:42for control of the store's tobacco
20. 0:45category their tight control of the
21. 0:47tobacco category often leaves retailers
22. 0:49feeling intimidated to discuss and or
23. 0:50reduce excessive tobacco Marketing in
24. 0:53their own stores the majority of us
25. 0:55tobacco retail Market uh retailers are
26. 0:58contracted with at least one big tobacco
27. 1:00company and contract non-compliance
28. 1:02results in the suspension and our
29. 1:03termination of the store's retail
30. 1:05contract with the tobacco industry due
31. 1:08to predatory tobacco industry retail
32. 1:10marketing practices stores located in
33. 1:12lowincome communities are heavily
34. 1:14burdened with excessive tobacco ad and
35. 1:17display placement their storefronts are
36. 1:19often covered with tobacco advertising
37. 1:21these stores receive higher quantities
38. 1:23of more high profile tobacco displays
39. 1:25the store the displays are often
40. 1:27merchandised in a manner in which the
41. 1:28more addictive brand Styles have a
42. 1:30higher quantity or or better brand
43. 1:32visibility on the on the cigarette
44. 1:33display in addition these stores receive
45. 1:35higher allocations of promotions which
46. 1:38also include a higher allocation of the
47. 1:40more addictive brand Styles flavored
48. 1:43tobacco products like cigars little
49. 1:44cigars and mutilated cigars are heavily
50. 1:46marketed in these stores the tobacco
51. 1:49industry often enforces no return
52. 1:52policies on tobacco products meaning
53. 1:55retailers must sell all tobacco product
54. 1:57in their store or risk losing money the
55. 2:00problem with that is these contracts
56. 2:02often require retailers to meet 100%
57. 2:05Distribution on certain brands that
58. 2:06might not sell in the retailer store
59. 2:08whatever does not sell will go still
60. 2:11expiration codes on tobacco products are
61. 2:13difficult for both the retailer and
62. 2:15customers to decipher meaning retailers
63. 2:17can sell and customers can can consume
64. 2:20Stell and infested tobacco
65. 2:23product the proposed New York City
66. 2:26Tobacco Control new New York City band
67. 2:28will restrict the tobacco ability to to
68. 2:31use discounting as incentive to low
69. 2:33retailers into contracts and therefore
70. 2:35manipulate the marketing in their stores
71. 2:37it will allow retailers to place tobacco
72. 2:39product in in containers or in drawers
73. 2:42which can possibly keep tobacco fresh
74. 2:44for longer periods of time for those
75. 2:45adult smokers that enjoy using tobacco
76. 2:48and in addition these these bands will
77. 2:50restrict the tobacco industry's ability
78. 2:52to heavily discount advertise and
79. 2:54promote more addictive products to
80. 2:56low-income residents that might not have
81. 2:58adequate health insurance to help them
82. 2:59to survive a smoking related disease
83. 3:02retailers do have the right to sell
84. 3:04tobacco in a responsible manner that
85. 3:06does not harm the public but the tobacco
86. 3:09industry's tight control over them is is
87. 3:11definitely an
88. 3:13issue as as a tobacco industry manager I
89. 3:18sit here today sacrificing my own
90. 3:20well-being knowing that the to the
91. 3:23tobacco wh blowers before me have had
92. 3:25their lives threatened these laws are
93. 3:28well Justified and they will will save
94. 3:30lives thank you and I I was whisper it
95. 3:34was whispered to me that you did not
96. 3:36state your name for the record so before
97. 3:38you begin your testimony you must Al
98. 3:40always to that so please your name laa
99. 3:44thank
100. 3:45you you still work in in in in in this
101. 3:48field no I'm a former a former okay okay
102. 3:52yeah and and so I cuz I I thought you
103. 3:54were you know putting yourself at at
104. 3:56Great Risk by being here and and and uh
105. 3:59um but you you you bring a you wonderful
106. 4:02a wonderful perspective that uh uh is
107. 4:06you really going to inform what we do
108. 4:08here so I think this gets the best panel
109. 4:10so far I think that's just what I
110. 4:13said Thank you thank you thank you all
111. 4:16for your testimony uh