CLARKE ISSUES STATEMENT ON FDA ANNOUNCEMENT TO BAN MENTHOL CIGARETTES AND FLAVORED CIGARS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 28, 2022
MEDIA CONTACT:
e: jeanette.lenoir@mail.house.gov
c: 202.480.5737
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) issued the following statement on the FDA announcement to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars:
“The FDA’s ruling to ban menthol cigarettes is not mutually exclusive to public health. We must examine potential unintended consequences this ban may have in Black and brown communities that have historically faced the brunt of good-intentioned laws that could lead to another Eric Garner incident. And so, I stand resolute that we must not hastily move forward without thoroughly understanding how this ban will disproportionately impact already disadvantaged and marginalized communities.”
###
Yvette D. Clarke has been in Congress since 2007. She represents New York’s Ninth Congressional District, which includes Central and South Brooklyn. Clarke is a Senior Member of both the House Energy and Commerce Committee and House Committee on Homeland Security, where she serves as Chair of the Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Innovation Subcommittee.
