OP-ED: Beverage Taxes Are Not the Health Solution that Working Families Need

"Make no mistake, these beverage tax initiatives that are cropping up around the country are devastating to poor- and middle-income people. A one-cent-per-ounce tax on soft drinks doesn’t sound so bad, but for the single parent buying 24-packs of soda for her kid’s birthday party, or the guy looking for a cheap drink after a long workday, those costs add up pretty quickly.

This gets to the heart of why beverage taxes have earned their reputation as unfair and regressive. Despite being portrayed as public health solutions, they end up harming the exact residents that they are supposed to help – primarily working-class African-Americans and Latinos. There are no health benefits to making someone a dollar poorer, and the fact that beverage taxes overwhelmingly affect minorities only makes them more dangerous and disingenuous."