NEW YORK - The makers of Marlboro, Camel and Newport filed a lawsuit last week challenging a recent New York Board of Health directive that requires Big Apple tobacco retailers to display posters showing diseased organs along with the message, "Quit Smoking Today," the New York Post reports.

The filing claims the regulation violates the First Amendment by requiring tobacco sellers "to undertake graphic advocacy on behalf of the city."

"The mandated signs crowd out other advertisements and otherwise dominate the point of sale in many smaller establishments, to the exclusion of merchandise or other messages chosen by the store owners," the suit says. "The signs thus deprive retailers of the limited space available for communicating with their customers and thereby restrict their speech."

The complaint further alleges that the directive conflicts with a 2001 U.S. Supreme Court ruling where, according to the plaintiffs, the court "made clear that the (federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act) preempts state and local restrictions on cigarette advertising at the point of sale that are motivated by health concerns."

The city's Health Department responded to the filing, maintaining, "Point-of-purchase warnings are one of the best tools we have to keep the next generation of New Yorkers from becoming addicted. By trying to suppress this educational campaign, the tobacco industry is signaling its desire to keep kids in the dark."