With the start of 2010, DU became a “smoke-free” campus. Decals are stuck to most doors of major buildings and the words “smoke-free campus, smoking prohibited,” are seen throughout the campus.
Although this is a positive thing when it comes to peoples’ health, the rules and regulations of this ban call into question whether DU is actually taking serious action, or whether the ban is simply jumping onto the “politically correct” bandwagon that many universities nationwide have joined.
Students, faculty and staff can smoke on city-owned streets and in two areas around the Ritchie Center and the Newman Center for the Performing Arts. These two buildings are the largest on campus, and the Ritchie Center is also home to our Health and Counseling Center, whose staff initiated the campaign to make the campus smoke free.
You would think that since the Health and Counseling Center was so insistent on this ban it wouldn’t want smoking near their facility, but then again the public often uses the Ritchie Center and it isn’t DU’s place to tell the public that it cannot smoke.
Another troubling aspect of the ban is that it is peer-enforced.
The university officials ask the campus community to “conform” to this new policy even though it is not an “administrative cudgel.”
This means fines and tickets will not be issued to those who ignore the ban.
As a DU student, I would say that if there are no real consequences for ignoring this ban, students will openly go about smoking.
It is troublesome to deal with a ban like this because it feels as if we are being mocked by not being allowed to make our own decisions about smoking.
College students are young adults who have the right to decide what they want to do or not do to their bodies. Many students are not taking this ban seriously because they see it more as a marketing tool for DU.
Potential students visit the campus with their parents throughout the year and it is definitely a positive point for parents to hear that their children would not suffer from second hand smoke on this campus.
But, if parents are being realistic, they would know that college students tend to pair alcohol and cigarettes together when they are enjoying a night out drinking and relaxing with their friends. So this ban really isn’t enforcing or changing behavior as much as it appears to be.
This ban ultimately seems to be a complete over reaction that supports all the people who overreact to smoking.
Only time will tell whether this ban is really about the health of students, or if it is simply another way for DU to promote itself to potential students and their families.
