WEBVTT 00:00.160 --> 00:04.700 JUDY WOODRUFF: As we reported earlier, the FDA announced that it hopes to ban menthol 00:04.700 --> 00:09.700 in cigarettes and cigars, citing its particularly harmful impact on Black communities in America. 00:11.900 --> 00:14.200 William Brangham has more on the FDA's move. 00:14.200 --> 00:15.929 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: That's right, Judy. 00:15.929 --> 00:20.929 For years, menthol cigarettes were marketed heavily to Black communities. And, today, 00:21.220 --> 00:26.220 it's estimated that 85 percent of Black smokers choose menthol brands, like Kool and Newport. 00:27.960 --> 00:32.540 Menthol is an additive that can mask the harshness of tobacco smoke, and it's believed to make 00:32.540 --> 00:35.280 nicotine even more addictive. 00:35.280 --> 00:40.280 Justifying their proposed ban today, FDA officials said this could help reduce the leading cause 00:41.120 --> 00:42.770 of preventable death in America. 00:42.770 --> 00:47.430 MITCH ZELLER, Food and Drug Administration: One study showed that, from 1980 to 2018, 00:47.430 --> 00:52.430 menthol cigarette smoking was linked to 378,000 premature deaths, three million life years 00:54.170 --> 00:57.230 lost, and 10.1 million new smokers. 00:57.230 --> 01:01.710 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Joining me now is Delmonte Jefferson. He's the executive director at 01:01.710 --> 01:06.110 The Center for Black Health & Equity, one of many groups that had been pressuring the 01:06.110 --> 01:08.010 FDA to take this step. 01:08.010 --> 01:10.110 Mr. Jefferson, great to have you on the "NewsHour." 01:10.110 --> 01:14.190 I listened to your press briefing earlier today, where -- you and several other groups 01:14.190 --> 01:18.880 that have been fighting this fight. And there were people on that call who were crying tears 01:18.880 --> 01:21.800 of joy for the announcement today. 01:21.800 --> 01:25.220 For people who have not been following this so closely, why is today such a big deal? 01:25.220 --> 01:26.500 DELMONTE JEFFERSON, Executive Director, The Center for Black Health & Equity: Well, it's 01:26.500 --> 01:31.500 a big deal because this goes well beyond 2009, when the FDA didn't ban menthol. 01:31.940 --> 01:36.940 This goes back to 1990, when tobacco industry tried to come into our communities with menthol 01:37.440 --> 01:41.430 products. And we have been fighting this fight since then. And so that's over 30 years. 01:41.430 --> 01:46.430 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: And what is it specifically that you find so troubling about menthol cigarettes? 01:46.750 --> 01:50.480 DELMONTE JEFFERSON: Well, first of all, it's very troubling how they targeted our communities, 01:50.480 --> 01:55.240 how the predatory marketing targeted our communities with their free cigarette sampling vans, with 01:55.240 --> 02:00.240 the sponsoring of our concerts and our events, paying off some of our elected officials and 02:00.470 --> 02:03.180 church officials to promote their cause. 02:03.180 --> 02:04.180 That's what's troubling. 02:04.180 --> 02:08.050 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: I mean, there's, I understand, to be a few issues with menthol in particular 02:08.050 --> 02:09.910 with regards to public health. 02:09.910 --> 02:14.910 One, it does make nicotine -- seems to make nicotine more addictive. But also by, as I 02:16.000 --> 02:20.060 mentioned, masking the harshness of the smoke, it seems like it makes it easier for people 02:20.060 --> 02:21.170 to start smoking. 02:21.170 --> 02:26.070 DELMONTE JEFFERSON: Well, that's the primary reason. The tobacco industry knew this. 02:26.070 --> 02:31.070 And menthol, as you may or may not know, is in every single tobacco product because it 02:31.390 --> 02:35.770 masks the harshness of the smoke. Now, it's not always a characterizing flavor, like it 02:35.770 --> 02:40.770 is in Kool and Newports, but it is in every single product just for that reason, to make 02:41.400 --> 02:43.280 it easier to get the poison down. 02:43.280 --> 02:47.490 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: You mentioned this issue of timing. And we certainly saw the FDA act 02:47.490 --> 02:52.490 much quicker on other flavored vaping products and nicotine products. 02:53.130 --> 02:58.130 You have been fighting this fight for decades. Does it bother you that it took so long for 02:58.900 --> 03:00.720 the FDA to take this step? 03:00.720 --> 03:02.319 DELMONTE JEFFERSON: Oh, absolutely. 03:02.319 --> 03:07.319 And that's another reason why you saw tears of joy today, because it has taken so long, 03:08.650 --> 03:13.650 because it was evident, quite evident, that menthol was lumped just in with the other 03:13.840 --> 03:18.760 evidences of systemic racism and health injustices that African-American communities have suffered 03:18.760 --> 03:20.040 so long. 03:20.040 --> 03:25.040 And so to have a victory of this magnitude, where the FDA comes out and says, yes, black 03:25.081 --> 03:29.709 lives do matter, yes, we do care about health for black communities, that was very important 03:29.709 --> 03:31.510 for us and very moving for us. 03:31.510 --> 03:36.510 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: As you well know, nicotine is a very addictive drug. 03:37.120 --> 03:41.600 Isn't there a concern that, if menthol cigarettes are banned, that smokers who are smoking menthols 03:41.600 --> 03:46.080 today will simply switch to other non-menthol cigarettes tomorrow? 03:46.080 --> 03:50.220 DELMONTE JEFFERSON: Well, what we have seen in other countries, we have seen other countries 03:50.220 --> 03:54.390 that have banned menthol, we have seen folks just say, well, wait a minute, we don't have 03:54.390 --> 03:56.190 menthol, I'm going to quit smoking for good. 03:56.190 --> 04:00.410 And this is actually what African-Americans have also said. If menthol were off the market, 04:00.410 --> 04:04.090 they wouldn't smoke tobacco products. And so now that menthol is banned, and now that 04:04.090 --> 04:09.069 we can get it off the market, it's time for us to really help to encourage that cessation 04:09.069 --> 04:10.340 effort at a national level. 04:10.340 --> 04:15.050 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: I should say, for all of the celebration today, there isn't total unanimity 04:15.050 --> 04:16.690 in the black community about this. 04:16.690 --> 04:21.690 Some have argued that, if you ban this, they will -- a black market will grow and that, 04:22.050 --> 04:26.990 if there's an illegal product, that that might just further interactions between the black 04:26.990 --> 04:30.460 community and law enforcement, when that's the last thing that we need. 04:30.460 --> 04:31.480 What do you make of that argument? 04:31.480 --> 04:34.710 DELMONTE JEFFERSON: Well, first of all, we have heard that argument before. We heard 04:34.710 --> 04:39.650 that argument back in 2009, when we were asking then for them to include menthol. 04:39.650 --> 04:44.650 And the argument itself generated from the tobacco industry. Now, the tobacco industry 04:44.870 --> 04:49.351 paid and they got spokespersons within the black community to make that argument. But 04:49.351 --> 04:52.650 this is an argument that comes from the industry itself. 04:52.650 --> 04:57.650 And, to be honest, there's absolutely no data to support it. Even since 2009, when they 04:59.440 --> 05:03.100 banned strawberry and grape and the other flavors, there's no evidence that we have 05:03.100 --> 05:07.460 had encounters with law enforcement because those flavors were banned and/or being smoked 05:07.460 --> 05:09.090 and utilized. 05:09.090 --> 05:12.710 Now -- and to the other point, however, and there was another point you made just about 05:12.710 --> 05:17.710 the criminalization, that too is strong propaganda, because they like to use and throw up Eric 05:19.040 --> 05:23.370 Garner, and they like to throw up Sandra Bland, and they like to throw up George Floyd and 05:23.370 --> 05:28.270 say, well, look, these were encounters because of tobacco, because of mentholated tobacco. 05:28.270 --> 05:32.650 However, for that same argument, I would throw out Anthony Brown. I would throw out Isaiah 05:32.650 --> 05:37.650 Brown and Dante Smith, these same individuals, other individuals that were killed just recently, 05:38.080 --> 05:41.800 with no encounter or no reason for cigarettes whatsoever. That wasn't the reason that they 05:41.800 --> 05:43.180 were approached by law enforcement. 05:43.180 --> 05:48.180 In fact, it's probably more dangerous to have a cell phone in your hand and up to your ear 05:48.500 --> 05:49.950 than it is to have a cigarette in your mouth. 05:49.950 --> 05:53.100 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: All right, well, we know that there's a long rulemaking process and 05:53.100 --> 05:57.400 certainly some industry litigation ahead before this finally takes effect. 05:57.400 --> 06:01.740 But, until then, Delmonte Jefferson at the Center for Black Health & Equity, thank you 06:01.740 --> 06:02.740 very much for being here. 06:02.740 --> 06:03.460 DELMONTE JEFFERSON: Thank you for having me.