14 Just out * lanuary a. 1399
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his past fall, tobacco companies
and 46 states agreed to a deal that
will force the companies to submit
to advertising restrictions and
spend $1.5 billion over the next
five years to fond anti-smoking education pro
grams.
Given the recent headlines— and the reality
that plenty of queer money goes up in smoke
every year via the purchase of tobacco prod
ucts —Just Out got to wonder
ing about the gay-friendliness
of the nation’s major tobacco
companies.
Philip Morris, the compa
ny that created the Marlboro |
Man, is the largest tobacco
business in the United States
and the world. It controls
about half the U.S. market ^
and produces Marlboro, as *-’
well as Virginia Slims and
Benson and Hedges.
The company’s empire
grew immediately after the tobacco deal was
announced in November. It agreed to buy
L&.M, Lark, and Chesterfield from Brooke
Group Ltd.’s Liggett Group. Philip Morris has
owned the international rights to the three
brands for 20 years.
Philip Morris includes sexual orientation in
its nondiscrimination policy, and company offi
cials say they address gay and lesbian issues dur
ing diversity trainings.
“We continue to implement a comprehen
sive strategy to strengthen and promote diversi
ty at all levels of our workforce and among ven
dors who serve us,” says a Philip Morris state
ment prepared in response to a request for infor
mation. “Since differences can become a busi
ness asset and can create a more dynamic and
productive working environment, our diversity
education training sessions are intended to
shape an environment that supports and
respects such differences.”
Â
D.C. D oobie
T
he fight to gain access to medical mari
juana is playing out in a federal court
room in Washington, D.C.
A C T UP members Wayne
¿¿S/SS
Turner and the late Steve
Michael were the forces
behind Initiative 59, a ballot
measure designed to decrimi
nalize and regulate medical
use of marijuana in the Dis
trict of Columbia.
Last October— less than two
weeks before the general elec- ^
tion— U.S. Rep. Boh Barr, a Republi
can from Georgia, proposed an amendment
to an appropriations bill, which passed Con
gress without debate. The amendment pre
vented the local board of elections from
spending money on the initiative. The ballot
was already printed, so the practical effect of
the amendment was to prevent counting the
citizens’ votes on the issue.
In a Dec. 18 court hearing, Graham Boyd
argued for Turner and other plaintiffs, includ
ing the American Civil Liberties Union, say
According to the missive, while Philip Mor
ris does not offer domestic partner benefits, it is
considering them and is currently conducting
research to see how programs have been admin
istered at other companies.
Philip Morris does not have a gay and lesbian
employees group hut would welcome one to join
its “numerous other employee-run networks.”
R.J. Reynolds, the nation’s No. 2 cigarette
maker, is held by RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp.,
whose other major subsidiary,
the separately traded Nabisco
Holdings, is the country’s top
cookie and cracker company.
R.J. Reynolds sells almost
100 tobacco brands, includ
ing Camel, Salem and Win-
V
ston. RJR Nabisco provided a
page from its management
guide as proof that the com
pany supports a diverse work
force.
Its “Workforce Diversity
Leadership Statement” claims
the company provides a climate that “values
diversity based on sexual orientation and all
other characteristics which make each person
unique.”
The company only offers benefits to the
spouses of married heterosexual employees, and
its human resources department is not aware of
any queer employee group within the company.
Brown and Williamson Tobacco Corp., the
makers of Kool and the discount brand GPC, is
the No. 3 cigarette maker in the U .S. and is a
subsidiary of British American Tobacco, the
world’s second largest cigarette maker. Brown
and Williamson, which also makes Carlton and
Lucky Strike, controls about 16 percent of the
U.S. market.
A company representative left a telephone
message saying the company does not provide
information to reporters about its policies.
Requests for additional information were unan
swered.
ing the amendment was unconstitutional
because it undermines a public discourse and
First Amendment protections.
He charged Congress acted out of hostili
ty toward Initiative 59 and, in doing so, can
celed an election— a move for which
there is “literally no [legal] prece
dent," he said.
U .S. Justice Department
attorney David Anderson
defended Congress, saying it
“ is the supreme political
authority in the District of
Columbia.”
Judge Richard Roberts took
the case under advisement.
Speaking outside the courthouse,
Turner said he was “outraged that the U.S.
Department of Justice is defending the plan
tation status that the residents of the District
of Columbia have.”
He added, “A s someone who watched the
person I loved die of AIDS wasting syn
drome, I will fight tooth and nail so that the
terminally ill can be comfortable in their last
days."
■ Reported by B o b R o eh r