Sparking activism
By Vinu Ilakkuvan | April 4, 2006By definition, the word means "to set fire to," but no definition, no dictionary, no words, can describe what Ignite has come to mean to second-year College student Katherine Klem and other young adults across the nation. Ignite, according to its mission statement, is "a grassroots organization empowering young people to hold the tobacco industry accountable by directing public officials to act responsibly." The organization was founded by Klem in 2002 when she was a sophomore in high school in Louisville, Ky. "I was simply outraged that an industry that was generally accepted by the public was handing out free cigarettes to kids in Asia and saying things like, 'Today's teenager is tomorrow's potential regular customer,'" Klem said, citing a Phillip Morrisreport.
