If alcohol is legal, marijuana should be legal too, argued Mason Tvert, executive director of Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation. Tvert spoke to a small group of students for close to two hours Wednesday night at Harris Hall. Students who braved the wind and snow heard stories of his decriminalization of marijuana possession in Denver.

Tvert, brought in by the Northwestern chapter of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws now travels the country, raising awareness for SAFER.

Since its inception in 2005, SAFER has successfully legalized marijuana possession (less than 1 ounce) for adults more than 21 years of age in Denver and almost succeeded in changing Colorado state law in 2006. It has also coordinated student referendum campaigns to make university penalties for marijuana no greater than those for alcohol. They have done so at universities ranging from University of Colorado – Boulder to George Washington University

Tvert said change has to occur on a grassroots level to succeed. From there, people can change, and then the laws. He urged the public not to be anti-alcohol, but pro-choice with drugs, pointing to statistics that reveal alcohol abuse as more dangerous than marijuana use in terms of domestic violence and deaths.

He also felt it was important to equate the punishment for underage use of alcohol and marijuana, stating that if alcohol was legal, the far less dangerous marijuana should be too.

Taylor Kirch, a Weinberg sophomore, and President of Northwestern’s young NORML chapter urged students to get involved by attending meetings every other week. Other upcoming events include a Feb. 20 screening of a medical marijuana documentary, as well a possible Apr. 20 screening of the pot-based comedy Harold and Kumar go to White Castle.

Kirch said she hopes that speakers like Tvert will help promote Northwestern’s NORML chapter, along with raising awareness and breaking the community into the idea of the decriminalization of marijuana.