Originally Posted by Mason Tvert

Our new campaign in Denver is officially underway!

Citizens for a Safer Denver formally kicked off its drive yesterday to collect 8,000+ Denver voter signatures to qualify a measure for the November ballot. This new initiative -- the latest project of the SAFER Voter Education Fund (SVEF) -- would create an ordinance making marijuana Denver's lowest law enforcement priority. This is very similar to a measure Seattle voters adopted in 2003, which has led to a dramatic decline in the number of marijuana arrests and citations in the city.

I encourage you to check out the slick new Citizens for a Safer Denver Web site at www.SaferDenver.com and please consider making a contribution to help us qualify for the ballot. We are still about $3,500 shy of our goal, and this is the last chance for your donation to be doubled by the matching offer of a very generous donor.

The campaign site includes the initiative language, as well as a campaign blog that will be continually updated with press pieces and updates. It already includes the press we've generated thus far, including a front page story from yesterday's Denver Daily News.

If you are in Colorado and would like to help out on the campaign, please contact us or be sure to visit www.SaferDenver.com and sign up on the volunteer page.

(BuzzNote: If you live in Denver, please be sure to sign the petition. Volunteering to work with SAFER can be a lot of fun. I worked with them on the statewide ballot issue last year.)

Finally, I am pleased to bring some good news regarding another Colorado battle we had taken on earlier this year. As you might recall, the city council in Lafayette (Boulder County) had given its initial approval to an ordinance that would have drastically increased the penalties for marijuana possession in the city.

At that time, SAFER rallied its allies in Colorado and organized a massive grassroots response. The measure was ultimately withdrawn from the agenda, and instead a council workshop was scheduled to develop other ways to address the issue (ie. increase penalties). SAFER kept the pressure on in the media, however, and this workshop was indefinitely postponed. Now, it is being reported that the council has absolutely no intention of bringing the issue up anytime soon.

In fact, Lafayette officials are using the marijuana issue as an example of something the city's people truly care about. In a recent news story about he city receiving backlash for an immigration-related resolution, the city manager pointed out that the response to the marijuana penalty increase "way outpaced this."

As you can see, we are truly working hard to defend adults who prefer to make the safer choice. If you support this effort and you are able to help us keep the fight alive and moving forward, please consider visiting our site to make a contribution today.

Or, if you would prefer to send a check or money order, please make it payable to "SVEF" and send it to P.O. Box 40332, Denver, CO 80204.

Thank you once again for your commitment to fighting marijuana prohibition, and we look forward to keeping you posted on what we hope will be a very exciting initiative campaign.

Sincerely,

Mason Tvert
Executive Director, SAFER/SVEF