Vanguard

Issue date: 10/15/07 Section: News

On Oct. 10, puzzled students walked across the University of South Alabama's campus, stopping at locations where signs displaying the number 3,400 were strategically posted around popular buildings. While many students at first glance mistook the signs to be mere building or classroom numbers, the significance of the 3,400 number was later revealed with another sign on Oct. 12.
The mystery behind the number begins with USA's Ignite Club, a campus organization empowering young people to hold the tobacco industry accountable by directing public officials to act responsibly, according to the Ignite organization's official national site. Ignite has been working for many years to engage in local and statewide advocacy for tobacco policy change, and USA's Ignite Club has just started its first active semester with the numbers campaign.
"By posting signs with just numbers on them around campus, we are trying to make the numbers campaign an attention getter," Sara Baghaei, president of the Ignite Club, said. "People have heard statistics so many times, but a random number will hopefully catch their attention and cause a little bit of curiosity."
Many Ignite members believe that the numbers campaign will drive a strong point home for students once the significance of the number is revealed.
"I think when people see the sign that says 3,400 people will die every year from lung cancer due to second hand smoking, it will really impact some people," Ignite member Ayesha Jaleel said.
Along with the numbers campaign, Baghaei and Vice President Shruti Puri hope to work towards making the USA campus smoke free, or at least enforce the 25-foot law. Together, the team hopes to pull together a group of students sharing the same wishes of making the current problems of smoking in the 25-foot zone cease to exist.
USA's Ignite Club is always looking for new members to help with future campaigns. To find out more information about club meetings, contact officials at ignitesouthalabama@gmail.com.
"I want to point out that we are definitely not against or after smokers," Baghaei said. "Smoke if you want, but just be careful around other people."
Visit http://ignitegeneration.org for more details for the official national Ignite organization.

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