Advocacy Training Prepares Youth for Altria Meeting (April 28, 2004)

ADVOCACY TRAINING PREPARES YOUTH FOR ALTRIA MEETING

On April 28, 2004, Youth Leadership Institute (CA), Essential Action (DC), REAL (HI), Dover Youth to Youth (NH), Expose (NM), Reality Check (NY), and FACT (WI) held a youth advocacy training in East Hanover, NJ to prepare for the Altria Annual Meeting of Stockholders the next day. Over 150 youth and adult coordinators attended, including youth from Colombia, Senegal, Thailand, Ukraine!

The training included the following elements:

1) OPENING SESSION "KNOW MORE LIES: A HISTORY OF PHILIP MORRIS"

General introduction to the corporation, followed by a world tour of its outrageous marketing practices and efforts to thwart effective tobacco control measures. Featured speakers: Sebastian Cortes (Colombia), Dr. Caleb Otto (Palau), Moustapha Drame (Senegal), Dr. Hatai Chitanondh (Thailand), Daria Semenova (Ukraine) & more!
View photos and examples featured in the "World Tour"
To order a CD copy of the "World Tour" presentation, send an email to [email protected]

2) 1st LICENSED TO KILL, INC MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS!

A year ago, Licensed to Kill, Inc, a tobacco company with the explicit purpose of "manufacturing and marketing tobacco in a way that each year kills over 400,000 Americans and 4.5 million other persons worldwide" was incorporated in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Youth played the role of corporate executives, directors, stockholders, cigarette girls, and security guards at the company's "annual meeting," which completely parodied Altria's Annual Meeting of Stockholders. A fun, creative way to learn how tobacco corporations work and to prepare for the real thing the next day!
Check out the full report and photos & CEO Rich Fromdeth's Business Presentation
To order a CD copy of Licensed to Kill's business presentation, send an email to [email protected]

3) SKILLBUILDING WORKSHOPS

A wide variety of skillbuilding workshops were held to prepare youth for the action the next day. Workshop topics included: working with the media, making effective visuals, event leadership skills, creating zines and press releases, street theatre, developing chants, and music/songs to protest by.

Photos of youth conducting mock media interviews with each other: 1, 2

4) PREPARATION FOR NEXT DAY

The youth training ended with an overview of what to expect the next day, both for youth demonstrating outside the meeting and youth going inside it. The session concluded with a role play.

View more photos from training

View the full program and short bios of
international participants