SAFER will host press conference and rally to discuss Councilman Thomas’s pro-alcohol, anti-marijuana proposal

Measure would lead to increases in alcohol use and alcohol-related problems by even further deterring adults from making the rational, safer choice to use marijuana instead.

DENVER, CO – On Tuesday, March 14, at 1 p.m., the national public education organization Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER) will host a press conference in front of City Hall in Cincinnati to discuss why Councilman Cecil Thomas’s proposal to increase marijuana possession penalties will lead to more alcohol-related crime and problems in the city. 

Mason Tvert, SAFER's national campaign director, will discuss the relative harms of marijuana and alcohol, and the incentives created by laws punishing adults for marijuana use.  He will also describe SAFER's successful efforts in Denver to pass the Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative last November, making the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana legal under city ordinances for adults 21 and older. The passage of this initiative demonstrated that most Americans recognize the fact that alcohol, not marijuana, is the source of many of our social problems.  The support for pushing Americans away from marijuana and toward alcohol is crumbling. 

“Councilman Thomas is a former police officer who must know alcohol contributes to violent and problematic behavior while marijuana does not,” said Tvert. “In addition, state and federal laws selectively prohibiting marijuana are already sending the dangerous message that adults should choose alcohol over marijuana simply because it is legal.  Piling on a city law will further increase the incentive to use alcohol instead of marijuana when in fact alcohol is far more harmful to both the user and to society. We trust the council will understand that preventing alcohol-related problems, such as domestic abuse, sexual assault, and other acts of violence, is more important than preventing an adult from using marijuana.”  

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WHAT:  Press conference and rally to oppose measure to increase marijuana possession penalties.

WHEN:  Tuesday, March 14, at 1 p.m.
        
Councilman Thomas’s measure will be considered at the City Council Law and

Public Safety Committee’s meeting at 2 p.m. 

WHERE:  In front of Cincinnati City Hall, 801 Plum Street

Law and Public Safety Committee will convene in Council Chambers, City Hall Room 300

WHO:  Mason Tvert, SAFER Campaign Director

Cincinnati citizens opposed to proposed measure will gather and hold a banner conveying the message that the Thomas proposal will drive people to drink.

Safer Alternative For Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER) is a national non-profit organization based in Colorado whose mission is to educate the public about the harmful consequences associated with alcohol, as compared to the safer—yet illegal—substance: marijuana.

Urge the Cincinnati City Council to Oppose Increased Penalties for Marijuana Possession