Schools and tobacco retailers shouldn't go hand in hand.

Tobacco and kids don't belong together, but right now, more than two-thirds of the nearly 9,000 licensed tobacco retailers are located within 1,000 feet of a school, and the majority are within 1,000 feet of another tobacco retailer.

Kids in New York City are more likely to find tobacco retail outlets than libraries or playgrounds in their neighborhoods, with approximately one licensed tobacco retail outlet for every 196 children in New York City, compared to one playground for every 1,765 children. In other words, kids are nine times likelier to pass a tobacco retailer than they are a playground.

It’s no wonder that approximately 15,000 public high school students smoke cigarettes, one-third of whom will die prematurely as a direct result of smoking. Across the state, 31.6 million packs of cigarettes are bought or smoked by kids under 18.

What's more, in New York City, tobacco use is the number one cause of preventable death, killing approximately 12,000 people per year.

Mayor Bill de Blasio supports a bill to protect our kids and our health by capping and gradually reducing the number of tobacco retail licenses available, as well as driving up the cost of tobacco.

Sign the petition to tell our City Councilmembers to follow suit and take a stand on tobacco for our kids.