An Op-Ed for the Smoking Ban on Campus
As a fifth year student at Northeastern, I’m certainly no stranger to the clouds of poisonous smoke that seem to be continually wafting around campus. It seemed that no matter the time of day or which part of campus I was headed to, I had to maneuver around people smoking cigarettes so I could find the clean air that my lungs deserve. As a non-smoker, I have no desire to inhale the potentially harmful second-hand smoke that intrinsically comes along with every lit cigarette. That being said, it should come as no surprise that I am overwhelmingly in favor of Northeastern’s recent smoking ban.
Effective on August 12th, smoking is no longer allowed on Northeastern grounds, with the exception of the streets that criss-cross through campus (a map of the parameters of the ban can be found here). For a number of reasons, this policy will be difficult to enforce. Two T stops as well as numerous eateries are located on campus, both of which bring hundreds of non-NU affiliated persons to our campus daily. Despite the numerous signs throughout campus, these people may not know about the anti-smoking policy, or having no connection to the school, may not care and smoke anyway. While I have heard some people express concern over unknowing people being fined and/or disciplined for smoking, I do not think that will be the case. I think a more likely scenario would be a NUPD officer asking the offender to put out their cigarette and the offender complying and moving on. No harm, no foul. I think it’s important to remember that Northeastern did not create this ban as a way to control and discipline students, but rather to promote a clean and healthy learning environment.
This ban will also be hard to enforce simply because of defiance and disregard from students. Many people think that banning smoking infringes upon their rights. I disagree. People are not being asked or forced to quit smoking, rather they are shepherded away from smoking in Northeastern-owned areas where there are large amounts of people who could be affected by second-hand smoke. This policy was not created as a tactic to control students and interfere with their personal lives but rather was implemented due to health concerns. First and second-hand smoke contain toxins which are known to be harmful to the body and in some cases, directly cause cancer. While it is completely in the rights of an American citizen to live an unhealthy lifestyle if they choose to, Northeastern cannot be blamed for trying to influence students to be healthier. It’s important to understand that this ban does not prohibit people from smoking, but rather limits the areas where they can engage in this harmful behavior. Just because people can no longer smoke wherever they please on campus does not mean it is now “difficult” for them to smoke. Quite frankly, no matter where you are on campus you are never more than a five-minute walk from a city-owned street where smoking is allowed.
Unawareness of the ban and defiance in response to the ban will certainly result in cigarettes still being smoked on campus. Not everyone who smokes will be caught and disciplined, but that’s to be expected. Rather, because smoking is now prohibited I think a majority of people will stop smoking on campus due to fear of disciplinary action, respect for the school’s rule, or because it doesn’t really impact their lives and smoking habits that much. Personally, I’ve been going to this school for five years and I can see the change and impact this policy had had so far. Far less people are smoking on campus and I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that the amount of harmful second-hand smoke polluting our campus has been reduced. It’s an amazing feeling to be able to walk in and out of Snell without encountering a wall of hazy, gray smoke and I hope that this trend continues.