Opposition mounted quickly. Those who took offense to this target marketing included, but was not limited to, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), American Cancer Society (ACS), Fox Chase Cancer Center, Graduate Hospital, the American Lung Association (ALA), the Black Clergy of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Chapter of the National Black Leadership Initiative on Cancer (NBLIC). Together, they and others formed the Coalition Against Uptown Cigarette.

Dr. Louis Sullivan, then Secretary of Health and Human Services, publicly denounced the marketing of Uptown cigarette, marking the first time a cabinet member had spoken out against a particular brand of cigarette.

The coalition used media advocacy and community mobilization to make R.J. Reynolds fully aware that Uptown cigarette was not welcomed in Philadelphia. By January 1990, R.J. Reynolds cancelled the test market before any Uptown cigarettes were sold.

The success of the Coalition Against Uptown Cigarette was the impetus for the formation of the National Association of African Americans for Positive Imagery (NAAAPI) in 1991.

For more information, see "Coalition Against Uptown Cigarette: Marketing Practices and Community Mobilization", visit www.onyx-group.com/Uptown1.htm