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June 25, 2003 For someone who doesn't smoke, she's tried to buy a lot of cigarettes This guest opinion is by Shannon O'Connor, a 17-year-old senior at Aloha High School in Beaverton. Length: 560 words. By Shannon O'Connor I admit it. My first day on the job, I was so scared I cried. I mean, I had walked into this store and asked the clerk for a pack of cigarettes. I was 14. For the past three years, I have been among about 25 teens who work in the state's federally required program to check tobacco retailers' compliance with laws against tobacco sales to kids under 18. My cigarettes of choice are Marlboro Reds. Not that I've ever smoked one, you understand. And, as I said, the first time I ever tried to buy cigarettes I was scared. I felt others in the store were judging me. Perhaps that's the whole point. A little background: When I try to buy cigarettes, I go into the store alone. A few moments later, a retired plain-clothes state police officer follows me in to observe. I ask the clerk for my Marlboro Reds. If the clerk asks my age, I am required to tell the truth. If the clerk sells to me, the officer cites the clerk as soon as the transaction is complete. Do clerks sell? Sure, but you might be surprised by how many don't. In fact, I have to listen to a lot of lectures from clerks. "I'll bet you're still in high school," one told me. "You have your whole life ahead of you. Why are you starting now?" A lot say, "Do you know it's illegal to buy cigarettes when you're under-age?" One clerk took down my name and address, said he gives this information to the local police. One told me, "Don't try that ever again." These clerks' responses are encouraging. They are in contrast to a new set of radio commercials that will air through July on 40 stations outside the Willamette Valley. One of the commercials features teens talking about how easy it is to buy cigarettes and chewing tobacco. For the past three years, clerks statewide have sold 17 percent of the time. I'm told that's better than the federal goal of 20 percent, but it's still a lot for a product that's illegal to sell to a minor. It's a lot when you figure the fine is up to $600. Why do clerks sell? I've had clerks not ask my age, even though it's hard to mistake me for an 18-year-old. I've seen clerks put my birth date through the scanner, and then conclude that the scanner must be wrong. Sometimes clerks who sell are just distracted, either by a store full of customers or by a personal phone call. When they are cited, some clerks get angry. Some cry. Some apologize. How do my friends feel about my job? Maybe you know the words "no way," as in, "No way do you have a job trying to buy cigarettes." Some kids at my high school do smoke. I see a group of 10 or so before and after classes sharing cigarettes across the street from the high school. Even though I know tobacco can be a ticket to poor health, I have more experience trying to buy it than most teens. I was recently asked what I'd tell another teen who was considering trying to buy cigarettes. My short answer: "I wouldn't try it." Shannon O'Connor, 17, will be a senior at Beaverton's Aloha High School in September. |
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