ANCHORAGE — The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol launched its first ads Monday in support of Measure 2, the initiative to end the harmful policy of marijuana prohibition in Alaska and replace it with a system in which marijuana is regulated and taxed like alcohol.
The campaign will hold a media availability with displays of the ads between 1 p.m. AKT and 3 p.m. AKT at 508 W. 2nd Avenue. Please contact Taylor Bickford at (907) 227-9718 or taylorb@strategies360.com to schedule interviews.
The provocative ads, which will appear on the rears and sides of People Mover city buses in Anchorage throughout the week, highlight the relative safety of marijuana compared to alcohol. The bus-side ads feature a bottle of beer, a bottle of wine, a bottle of liquor, and a bottle of water with a marijuana plant in it below the words “Beer,” “Wine,” “Liquor,” and “Safer,” respectively. The bus-rear ads feature a pint of beer, a glass of liquor, and a marijuana leaf below the words, “Beer,” “Liquor,” and “Safer,” respectively.
“Our laws should be based on facts, and it’s a fact that marijuana is far less harmful than alcohol,” said CRMLA Political Director Chris Rempert. “Countless government reports and scientific studies have concluded marijuana is less addictive than alcohol, less damaging to the body, and less likely to contribute to violent and reckless behavior. It is irrational to continue punishing adults for making the safer choice.”
In 2010, over 2,000 Alaskans were arrested simply for having marijuana, which equates to one marijuana possession arrest every 4.32 hours in this state.
“For decades, the federal government and other prohibition supporters have been exaggerating the potential harms of marijuana in order to keep it illegal,” Rempert said. “Once voters recognize marijuana is actually less harmful than alcohol they tend to agree that it should be treated that way.”
On Sunday, the New York Times’ editorial board called for the end of marijuana prohibition, stating that it “has been more than 40 years since Congress passed the current ban on marijuana, inflicting great harm on society just to prohibit a substance far less dangerous than alcohol.” Nearly three-quarters of Americans agree that marijuana is safer than alcohol, and the majority believe that it should be similarly regulated.
