It’s no accident that nearly 9 in 10 African-American smokers use menthol cigarettes, which are easier to smoke and harder to quit. The tobacco industry strategically and aggressively targeted the black community with menthol cigarettes for decades.
So when Altria announced it would donate $5 million to social justice organizations that address systemic racism, as well as small businesses impacted by recent demonstrations against police brutality, the company couldn’t hide its shameful hypocrisy as it continues to spend billions to market its deadly products.
The death and disease the company’s products have brought on the community are devastating. The black community has disproportionally higher death rates from tobacco-related causes than other racial and ethnic groups and the dangers of tobacco use are especially dire now, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has named smoking a risk factor for developing severe illness from COVID-19, which is also taking a disproportionate toll on the black community.
As the company ignores real actions it could take to save black lives, its donation aligns with a longstanding tobacco industry strategy to protect its business interests. Tobacco companies have a history of making financial contributions to African-American groups and political leaders to ally themselves with the community and help protect against stricter regulations.
“For decades, the tobacco companies have used predatory practices aimed to push their deadly product on to the Black community, practices that contribute to the approximately 45,000 Black people who will die every year from tobacco-related diseases,” said former Truth Initiative fellow Lincoln Mondy in his documentary "Black Lives / Black Lungs," which explores the history, marketing tactics and impact of the tobacco industry targeting African Americans with menthol tobacco products.