Hello, my name is Brooke Barton, and I am a junior at Kingfisher High School. I originally attended Putnam City North High School and worked with my fellow peers on the CounterAct Tobacco Campaign. CounterAct Tobacco works to educate for stricter tobacco policies to prevent the sale and advertisement of tobacco to minors while also advocating for the removal of preemption laws in Oklahoma that limit local authority. 

Comprehensive tobacco licensing would give power to the cities/towns of Oklahoma. I just recently worked on collecting data for the CounterAct Tobacco campaign at the YAHL summit. We walked around Bricktown collecting surveys as a measure of progress for our campaign. I thought it was a really good experience and a chance to build up my confidence in talking to people about this campaign. 

I think people should support the CounterAct Tobacco campaign and its efforts for policy changes. We are trying to protect this generation of youth and the ones to come, from falling into the trap of big tobacco companies.

By: Brooke Barton, Kingfisher High School