Rev. Horace Sheffield on May 16, 2013. Kimberly P. Mitchell/Detroit Free Press
Detroit pastor says he was offered $250,000 to oppose menthol cigarette ban
A pastor was offered hundreds of thousands of dollars to lead a campaign against banning the sale of menthol cigarettes in the U.S., the Bureau of Investigative Journalism has learned.
The Rev. Horace Sheffield, a prominent Black civil rights campaigner in Detroit, was told the money was coming from RJ Reynolds, the tobacco giant behind America’s most popular brand of menthol cigarettes, Newport.
His exclusive interview with the Bureau gives a rare insight into how companies attempt to influence the menthol debate via Black-led organizations, which are often in desperate need of more funds.
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