FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, June 30, 2016
Stratford – Families are invited to a free outdoor movie night on Friday, July 15, at the SERC site in Stratford (at Matilda and Oakdale Avenues)!
Games and activities, such as button making and a photo booth, will start at 7:30pm. The movie, The Jungle Book (2016), will start at dusk (about 8:45pm). Free popcorn will be handed out while supplies last.
The outdoor movie night event is taking place to educate parents about the impact smoking in movies can have on children and teens. “The smoking shown in movies happens at a much higher rate than it does in reality, and many of those films are rated for children and youth,” says Lyndsay O’Donnell, Public Health Promoter. “And we know that when kids see tobacco use on-screen, it increases the risk they’ll start to smoke.”
In the past ten years, 86% of movies with smoking were rated for kids and teens. In Ontario, smoking and tobacco content are not currently considered when assigning movie ratings. Explains O’Donnell: “To protect our children and teens and to prevent a new generation of smokers, we are asking that all future movies that contain tobacco use be given a rating of 18A.”
The outdoor movie night is being hosted by the Perth District Health Unit, the THINK team, and the City of Stratford.
The rain location is the Rotary Complex. Follow the THINK team on Facebook and Twitter for more information and weather updates.
For more information:
- Call Health Line at 519-271-7600 ext 267 or toll-free at 1-877-271-7348 ext 267
- Visit www.pdhu.on.ca and www.smokefreemovies.ca
Follow the THINK team on Twitter at www.twitter.com/THINKperth and on Facebook