We know from tobacco industry documents, which were released as part of lawsuits against the industry, that companies certainly targeted low-income people — specifically people down on their luck. They positioned cigarettes as the one good thing in their lives. It’s really condescending and elitist.
The tobacco industry documents are damning but, to me, do not reflect the true injustice of what is going on. You need to look at the epidemiological data, which shows the incredible concentration of smoking among people with the lowest incomes and the lowest education levels.
The evidence is in their actions. Lower-income communities have more places to buy tobacco, more tobacco advertising and lower cigarette prices. It’s not surprising that smoking is so concentrated among these groups — 72 percent of smokers are from lower-income communities.