Park Center Sisters Urge City-Run Stores to Stop Selling Tobacco
Brooklyn Center will stop selling tobacco products in its city-run liquor stores starting January 1. Two Park Center Senior High students approached the council about the measure back in November.
“They said it doesn’t make sense for the city to sell tobacco at municipal liquor stores. Do you think we could ask them to stop? I said sure, why not,” said Emily Anderson, with the Association of Nonsmokers Minnesota.
Anderson worked with the students, who are sisters, Yong Cheng Yang and Khemee Yang on their efforts. The Yang sisters asked the council not to approve the two licenses to sell tobacco at the city’s two municipal stores.
At Monday night’s council meeting, the mayor and city council approved the measure and recognized the two sisters for their work.
“I’m so grateful for everything,” said Yong Cheng Yang. “I think this was a really big night, because it proves that you can be successful if you work for it.”
Brooklyn Center will lose about $6,000 from selling tobacco and tobacco related products at their two municipal liquor stores. It accounts for less than half of one percent of all sales.
Robbinsdale passed the same measure about a month ago.
Park Center Senior High School
