After Boston Mayor Martin Walsh signed an ordinance Wednesday to ban its use, smokeless tobacco will no longer be a part of Boston’s longstanding sports culture.
The ordinance, which will prohibit smokeless tobacco at all Boston sporting events, is a coordinated effort with the Boston City Council, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids organization and public health officials.
“Our baseball parks are places for creating healthy futures, and this ordinance is about doing the right thing as a community for our young people,” Walsh said in a Wednesday press release. “The consequences of smokeless tobacco are real, and we must do all that we can to set an example.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approximates that nearly 9 percent of high school students used smokeless tobacco products in 2013, according to the release.
The signing coincides with Childhood Cancer Awareness Month in Boston. Walsh himself is a childhood cancer survivor.
John Schachter, spokesman for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said part of the issue stems from children emulating the behavior of their role models.
“There’s this viewpoint that chewing tobacco is not so bad. And part of that is the role model issue: you see your favorite players chewing, you see the folks you follow every day and [want to] emulate,” Schachter said. “You see them chewing and think it must be okay, but it’s not.”
The organization has worked with the Major League Baseball team owners and players to get them to cut back on chewing tobacco use, Schachter said. After Tony Gwynn of the San Diego Padres died of mouth cancer in 2014 and Curt Schilling of the Boston Red Sox experienced his own oral cancer complications the same year, the campaign decided to reboot and stress the elimination of tobacco, he said.
“Knowing that the players weren’t agreeing to a complete ban, we decided to go city by city,” Schachter said. “Boston, with Mayor Walsh being one of the leaders, was one of the first cities we were in touch with.”
Walsh filed the ordinance with the Council on Aug. 10. It was approved by councilors on Sep. 2.
Schachter added that Boston is just one of many cities banning chewing tobacco use at sporting events. He said leadership is integral to starting a movement.
“When [people] see leaders like Mayor Walsh giving the issue even more prominence and taking a leadership role, I think other cities are saying that it’s a wise thing to do,” he said. “We’re not going to rest until all 28 major league cities have taken this action … but we’re not really showing our cards yet.”
Chewing tobacco can be equally as harmful as regular cigarettes, Schatcher said, but people are not always aware of the risk.
“We don’t compare the dangers of cigarette smoking. It’s a different product but it does contribute to a variety of cancers, tooth decay, gum erosion and a variety of oral maladies,” he said. “It contains thousands of chemicals including [around] 69 that are known carcinogens, cancer-causing chemicals, so it is extremely hazardous. The worst part of it is unlike cigarettes, people don’t seem to realize how bad it is.”
Several residents shared varying opinions about the smokeless tobacco ban.
“If it’s illegal for the players to be chewing it, why should the fans in the stands be chewing it, right?” said Amanda Luella, 22, of Allston.
Bryan Russo, 24, of Allston, said the ban would help reduce children’s exposure to tobacco.
“If children are going to watch baseball, they’re going to watch all of the baseball games,” he said. “That’s a good policy, if he [Walsh] is joining part of a movement that other people are part of.”
