Rendez-vous with . . . Georgina Lovell, about 'You are the Target'
Author: Philippe BoucherRendez-vous 151
February 18, 2003
Rendez-vous 151 with Georgina Lovell about You are the target Author of You are the target and the class curriculum Project Moving Target Vancouver, British Columbia chryancomm@dccnet.com www.you-are-the-target.com
Thank you Georgina for accepting our rendez-vous. May I ask you to introduce yourself?
Georgina Lovell: My casual interest in tobacco industry fraud became more structured following Workers Compensation Board hearings in British Columbia where I presented a five-page brief in support of proposed smoke-free workplaces. At these hearings I heard presentations from tobacco front groups and industry spokespeople making the most ridiculous statements, and my interest was irrevocably piqued. I studied Journalism at Ryerson (Broadcasting major). Following completion of public relations work for community service groups I went on to complete further studies in Canada and England when I changed direction to work in suicide intervention and grief counseling. My career has come full circle from freelance writing, media/public relations and community service to return to research and writing. I am Canadian, married to an English husband who is a Master Mariner. When our children were growing up we were based in England for several years while he worked in the UK, Europe, Saudi Arabia and Dubai. Our children pursue university studies and professional careers. We call Vancouver, BC home, and enjoy the many wonderful outdoors activities the Pacific Northwest has to offer year-round, especially hiking and jogging on the many beautiful trails here, kayaking, salmon fishing -- and, of course, boating.
Q1. You mention as impetus for writing your book You Are the Target, your parents and your being called a nico-nazi when you posted a smoke-free message on a discussion board. Can you tell us about those influences?
Georgina Lovell: Tobacco has been the direct cause of suffering and death in my family and my husband's family. My father died of lung cancer. My father-in-law died of an unexpected heart attack. My mother was diagnosed ten years ago with emphysema. My mother-in-law died of heart disease. With my mother's diagnosis and the eye-opening experience of living with COPD, I could no longer shrug off disease and death caused by smoking and passive smoking as just-one-of-those-things. I went looking for answers about how any industry can continue selling a product now known beyond doubt to be addictive and lethal. My timing was fortuitous because at the same time I became curious, the first big lawsuits were in progress in the US and all those previously secret tobacco documents began arriving in the public domain. In the course of my research I discovered the pro tobacco subculture that exists on internet message boards. On one forum I expressed my point of view in support of clean indoor air, and within minutes the attacks against me started. With each absurd pro tobacco denial of well-established facts about nicotine addiction and disease caused by smoking, I found new avenues to explore and new documents to discover. Those who tried so hard to insult me actually assisted with my research.
Q2. The book is accompanied by a five sections curriculum document for the classroom that was launched in October 2002. Can you tell us about this part of the project? Why did you decide to add such a document? How does it work? Are you visiting schools yourself? What age groups are concerned?
Georgina Lovell: Project Moving Target has taken on a life of its own! Following the release of You Are The Target, various regional health authorities and school districts invited me to speak to secondary schools about awareness of tobacco trickery. The reaction from teachers, school superintendents and most of all the students was very enthusiastic. The students were shocked to hear about the incriminating information in tobacco documents, and wanted to learn more -- and many expressed interest in taking this new information about tobacco fraud to another level. I worked closely with teachers to compile Project Moving Target, which consists of tobacco documents for review by secondary school students. Project Moving Target provides maximum flexibility for teachers to decide age and ability appropriate material for individual students. The strength of Project Moving Target is the use of actual tobacco documents made available for student review. The students can see for themselves how the industry has lied, and the outrage experienced by many of the participants has provided sufficient motivation to quit smoking. When the lesson plans have been completed to the satisfaction of the teacher/facilitator, the secondary school students receive a Certificate of Achievement and become Tobacco Awareness Peer Mentors. Secondary school teachers liaise with elementary schools, which the Peer Mentors visit once a week for three consecutive weeks to talk about what they've learned. Peer Mentors work in pairs, for support and practical back-up and are always under the guidance and supervision of a teacher or volunteer parent. Some Peer Mentors are smokers and ex-smokers, and their stories have greater impact on fourth and fifth graders than any lecture given by an adult! A grant from the City of North Vancouver funded the pilot project in October 2002 and the outcome has exceeded everyone's expectations. Of the Peer Mentors who began their training as smokers, 30% have quit smoking and remain smoke free six months later. The high school involved reports an overall drop in smokers from one-half the school population to one-quarter. The reason given is a simple one: the teenagers involved do not take kindly to being duped by a greedy industry who views them as addict fodder and future profits. I completed a three-week tour in November 2002, talking to 12,000 school children of all ages throughout Nova Scotia with a stopover in Toronto on the way back to BC As I write this I am preparing to leave for Canada's far north: the Yukon Territories, where I will be talking to students from elementary school to college level, including two videoconferences to remote area schools. I am working with the Health Promotion Department for the Yukon to implement Project Moving Target in Whitehorse schools. We already have fifteen secondary school students who have signed up to participate!
Q3. While researching background info about what is happening in British Columbia I had the impression many tobacco control programs that used to exist have disappeared. I could hardly find any significant information on the provincial government website except about the launch of a tobacco-free sports campaign. How do you assess the situation?
Georgina Lovell: Our current BC government has made it clear they have little interest in following through with tobacco regulation initiated by their predecessors. For the first time in history, the provincial government exercised its veto overruling the Workers Compensation Board's recommendation for province-wide smoke-free workplaces. Tobacco industry presence has become increasingly apparent since our last election, which included generous tobacco donations to the Liberal party now in office.
Q4. I was very interested by what you wrote about John Diamond, this British columnist who died of throat cancer at 47 in March 2001. A soon as he was diagnosed in March 1997 he engaged in many anti-tobacco activities, articles, TV shows, a book. Have the TV shows been aired in Canada? Can you tell us more about him?
Georgina Lovell: John Diamond wrote for one of my favorite English newspapers, and while living in England I followed his columns regularly. He lived a somewhat high profile kind of life, married to the daughter of Nigel Lawson, former Chancellor of the Exchequer. After returning home to Canada, I continue reading The Times of London and other British newspapers, thanks to the internet, and that is how I learned of his cancer diagnosis and ensuing efforts to tell the truth about tobacco. He scored a bulls eye when his comments were called "irresponsible" by the Tobacco Manufacturer's Association, who would probably be happy for us all to believe they epitomize responsible behavior. John's sharp wit and self-effacing humor grew sharper and funnier as his suffering increased. He turned the tragic irony of a broadcaster married to a master chef who loses his voice and his tongue into a legacy for others facing a frightening and painful death to help them feel less alone. Unfortunately I don't believe the BBC program “Inside Story” chronicling his courageous journey has aired here. His book, C: Because Cowards Get Cancer Too is outstanding and has become recommended reading for hospice workers.
Q5. When you expose the tobacco industry devious advertising you often rely on US examples. What are the tobacco advertising and promotion regulations now in place in Canada? Is the industry able to circumvent the restrictions? Did you notice new tactics?
Georgina Lovell: The tactics are all variations on the same theme and best summarized in a 1976 Lorillard Tobacco quotation: "Get away from facts". US examples were the most readily available when I began my research, accounting for the predominantly American illustrations of tobacco deceit in my book. I am currently working on a second book which will contain considerably more Canadian content now that I have learned how and where to find it. I have had inquiries about adapting/translating the book and Project Moving Target beyond North America and Europe and the supply of resource material knows no national boundaries. In December 2002 the Canadian tobacco companies failed to get the Tobacco Act overturned when a Québec Superior Court Judge upheld the constitutionality of the Act. The Tobacco Act was passed by Parliament in 1997, following a 5-4 Supreme Court judgment in November 1995 that overturned the complete advertising ban contained in the 1988 Tobacco Products Control Act. The Tobacco Act severely restricts the advertising media and other advertising permitted to promote tobacco products. The judge also upheld regulations under the Act that require picture-based health warnings on cigarette packs and require manufacturers to provide detailed information about product ingredients, emissions, marketing activities and research.
Q6. Is there anything you would like to add?
Georgina Lovell: I have had the great good fortune to meet and interview some of the leaders working in tobacco control. Through them I have seen how concerted, determined efforts translate into improved public awareness about nicotine addiction and tobacco use, and legislation governing sale and consumption of tobacco products. Through the groundbreaking legal work of Mike Moore and many others who beat tobacco lawyers at their own game, I believe the chink in tobacco armor has finally appeared with the reservoir of their own documents, embarrassing at least and incriminating at most. Without exception, these documents provide irrefutable evidence of gross misconduct. Past deeds reveal future intent, and now we know.
Thank you Georgina for taking the time to be with us today.
Philippe Boucher
Editor of Tobacco Control Rendez-Vous and The Tobacco Control Directory