What is Great American Smokeout?
The American Cancer Society sponsors the Great American Smokeout on the third Thursday of November (November 21), challenging smokers to give up cigarettes for 24 hours. If you or a loved one smokes cigarettes, consider joining the movement, and take the first step toward quitting cigarettes forever!
History of Great American Smokeout
The inception of the Great American Smokeout stems from a 1970 event in Randolph, Massachusetts. High school guidance councilor Arthur P. Mullaney asked people to give up cigarettes for one day and donate the money they would have spent on buying cigarettes to a high school scholarship fund. A few years later in 1974, newspaper editor Lynn R. Smith led Minnesota’s first Don’t Smoke Day. The two efforts caught on and on November 18, 1976, the California Division of the American Cancer Society got 1 million people to quit smoking for the day. This marked the first official Smokeout before the American Cancer Society took it nationwide in 1977. As a result, there was a dramatic change in the public view of tobacco advertising and use. Many public establishments and work places are now smoke-free to protect non-smokers and support people trying to quit.
Every year the Great American Smokeout draws attention to preventing deaths and chronic illnesses caused by smoking. From the late 1980s to the 1990s, many state and local governments have raised taxes on cigarettes, limited promotions, discouraged teen cigarette use, and taken further action to counter smoking. States with strong tobacco control laws saw up to a 42% decrease of smoking in adults.
Though smoking rates have dropped, almost 38 million Americans still smoke tobacco, and about half of all smokers will encounter smoking related deaths. Each year, more than 480,000 people in the United States die from a smoking related illness, meaning smoking causes 1 out of 5 deaths in the US alone.
If you think this holiday is about barbeque, then you’d be mistaken. While it sounds like a great barbeque competition, it’s about a challenge for people all over the United States to quit smoking. As 40 million adults still smoke yearly, this is a day to either start the first day of smoking or gives them an opportunity towards making a plan to quit smoking for good. If you want to know how to take part in this holiday, the read more to learn about its history and how you can begin the end of smoking.
History of Great American Smokeout
The first Great American Smokeout started back in 1970, where it began as a series of smaller initiatives. In Randolph, Massachusetts, Arthur P. Mullaney, a guidance counselor for the Randolph High School, suggested a day where people stop smoking and organized an event where people instead of spending their money on cigarettes would donate their money so they can form college scholarships. Using the tagline ‘Light up a Student’s Future, Not a Cigarette’, the first held event happened in 1972 and brought in $4,500 dollars in donations. Each year the donations increased and the holiday spread. The next state to take on the holiday was Minnesota, when Lynn R. Smith, an editor of the Monticello Times, launched an initiative called D-Day, which stood for Don’t Smoke Day.
From there, the California Division of the American Cancer Society adopted this holiday in 1976 and has since been successfully helping over one million smokers quit for the day. Since then, the American Cancer Society annually holds fundraising events, taking in donations, and helping smokers all over the country get the resources they need to quit smoking. The American Cancer Society provides factual information for smokers, such as the possible future health problems that could exist and the stories of smokers who have quitted and plan to quit so a community could form and people’s lives can be saved.
How to celebrate Great American Smokeout
If you’re thinking about quitting, why not team up with the thousands of other smokers who are planning to use the Great American Smokeout. Volunteer for a fundraising event. Donate money to the cause. You can also use the American Cancer Society’s resources to quit smoking for good and install a yearly plan to keep you away from tobacco products. Also, if you love this holiday, share the news of it on your favorite social media websites by using the hashtag #greatamericansmokeout.
