Features
By Ryann Dannelly
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October 10, 2012
University of Richmond alumnus Mason Tvert is one of the leading advocates for legalizing marijuana in Colorado through Amendment 64, which if passed in November, would create the first state system where marijuana would be regulated and taxed like alcohol.
Tvert, a 2004 graduate, is the co-founder of Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER), the SAFER Voter Education Fund and has frequently appeared in the news to promote the message that marijuana is safer than alcohol.
Amendment 64 will appear on the November 2012 ballot, he said.
If passed, the amendment would remove all legal penalties for the personal use, possession and limited home-growth of marijuana for adults 21 years of age and older in Colorado.
One of the most recent polls, conducted about two weeks ago by the Denver Post, shows support for the passing of Amendment 64 at 51 percent to 40 percent not in favor of passing.
Most of Tvert's time and energy is spent arguing that marijuana is a safer substance than alcohol, a belief that was formulated during his time at Richmond, he said.
Tvert said in high school he would frequently drink on the weekends without any fear of punishment.
The summer after his high school graduation, Tvert attended a concert from which he had to be taken by ambulance to a hospital, unconscious, to have his stomach pumped for alcohol poisoning, he said.
"I was released from the hospital without any sort of punishment," Tvert said.