This news on Tokyo’s anti-drug propaganda video was published on May 2, 2020 by greenzonejapan
Tokyo – Japan/ In March 2020, a video clip was released by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of Social Welfare and Public Health. The video is a part of its anti-drug use campaign for youth.
For some unknown reason, a version of Tokyo’s anti-drug propaganda video with English subtitles has been produced. Here it is:
As some of you may already know, Japan is left far behind from the current global trends with regard to cannabis. This anti-drug video shows just how archaic some of the views held in Japan about cannabis really are, and therefore we have shared the clip with a few medical professionals and activists in the US and asked them for comments.
“The Tokyo government has created a seductive, but misleading message for children about cannabis by expropriating the medium anime. One needs only to examine the statistics on millions of deaths worldwide due to alcohol and tobacco usage to realize the false propaganda in comparison to cannabis, which has very limited and avoidable toxicity and cannot produce death by overdose. No one is suggesting that children smoke, but properly constituted oral medicines produced from cannabis have proven safety and efficacy in treating nausea associated with chemotherapy, spasticity in multiple sclerosis, severe epilepsy syndromes and adjunctive benefits in chronic pain. A better message for youth would be that cannabis is a potential medicine for severe illness. This approach will be accurate and provide less attractive to young people.”
CEO, CReDO Science
Former Director of the International Cannabinoid Research Society.
Here is the link to his interview article by Green Zone Japan.
“By lumping cannabis, which has never killed anyone, together with narcotics and hard drugs, the Japanese government is actually promoting the use of dangerous drugs. Because when someone finds out the truth that cannabis is not harmful or dangerous they may not believe anything the “authorities” say about drugs that are truly harmful and will, therefore, be more likely to experiment with dangerous substances.”
Director, Project CBD
Here is the link to his interview article by Green Zone Japan.
“Running commercials oriented toward children to say no to dangerous drugs is good policy. However, the information provided must be respectful of how marijuana has not been scientifically shown to be a dangerous drug. In fact, in America and a number of other countries, it is recognized as serving a medical purpose. It is even allowed for adults, not children, to safely use it for recreational purposes as long as they do not drive a vehicle under its influence. Lumping false information about the dangers of marijuana weakens the credibility of messages that also try to discourage dangerous drugs. The advertisement that I saw makes that error and hurts the otherwise good advice that it provides.”
former Seattle City Council President and a 5 term council member
“While children should certainly refrain from using cannabis, the information contained in the 1 minute Stop Drugs Movie portraying cannabis as a dangerous drug is inaccurate, a gross exaggeration, and constitutes “reefer madness.” Cannabis is a relatively benign therapeutic natural substance that is currently being used recreationally by millions of Americans with negligible negative impact. The people of Japan would be better served with truthful educational materials about cannabis, the endocannabinoid system, and its actual positive and negative potential.”
Executive Director, Seattle Hempfest
Green Zone Japan was in this episode of the podcast he hosts, Hempresents.
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