An anti-smoking advocate says the decision to leave menthol cigarettes on the market "prioritizes politics over lives, especially Black lives."
The alternatives have a similar taste, packaging and marketing. Anti-smoking activists say this is a way to get around state and federal bans.
Black smokers make up menthol tobacco's largest market, and have the highest rates of lung cancer. But the fight over banning menthol is a complex and divisive issue in the Black community.
