Free Republic

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to introduce a nationwide ban on the sale of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars this spring, a move intended to reduce racial health disparities in tobacco-related diseases and death. But the proposal has divided racial justice advocates who debate whether the health benefits would come at the risk of further criminalizing Black communities. The FDA gave itself until April to draw up rules that limit the sale of menthol cigarettes, which are easier to smoke and harder to quit than unflavored products. The tobacco industry’s marketing of menthols included a targeted campaign...