Welcome to the Quit Quarter Web Site!
Goal: To encourage tobacco control and promote smoking cessation by minting and distributing a Quit Quarter coin with a broken cigarette design.
UPDATE: The mint reported that their mandate is to promote Canadian culture and heritage.
They did not feel that the pink ribbon breast cancer quarter met their goals.
They have therefore decided not to consider promoting public health by minting a "Quit Quarter".
Canada was the first country in the world to mint coloured coins for general use. This technology has been used to mark Remembrance Day and to promote breast cancer awareness. It should now be used to promote smoking cessation. More women die every year of lung cancer due to smoking than die of breast cancer. Four times as many Canadians die every year from smoking than died during an average year during the World Wars.
Cigarettes have to be bought with money. Including a Quit Quarter into the currency makes it likely that people will be reminded of the significance of smoking cessation at the time they purchase cigarettes. Wouldn't it be great if the first pocket money a child was given included a coin with the message " Don't use this money to buy cigarettes ! " ?
Smoking is still the #1 cause of preventable deaths in Canada. 19% of Canadians smoke, and the actual number of smokers is increasing as the population increases. We need to do something more to prevent children from starting smoking and to encourage smokers to quit.
We could copy Australia and insist on uniform plain packages for cigarettes. Other countries are doing more: Singapore is proposing to deny access to tobacco to those born from 2000, so that children who are now under 12 will grow up smoke-free. Bhutan has banned the sale of tobacco throughout the country, and given the police have the power to raid homes where they suspect people are smoking.
We need a counterblast to the advertising and public relations campaign of the tobacco industry. A Quit Quarter in everyone's pockets would be a great way to start.
Please explore this web site, check out pictures of the Quit Quarter and other quarters, and find out how you can support the campaign.
everyone who died from smoking.