Ending the Stigma - By Having Tough Conversations
By Geoff Dear, President, Muse Cannabis
At least once a day, I have a conversation with someone that reveals the stigma associated with cannabis is still alive and well in BC. Maybe it’s when another parent at hockey practice asks what I do, or when people rally against a new Muse location in their neighbourhood out of misplaced fear it will “lead to more youth consumption” and “cannabis is evil.” Or even inside a Muse store where some new customers still walk in shocked that this is a cannabis store. But it’s so…nice?!
These conversations add up and I’m acutely aware of the work the legal cannabis industry needs to do to chip away at these stereotypes, and I’d like to think that’s why when I was approached to support the Let’s Talk Overdose conference, my first reaction was not to associate Muse’s brand with it. My gut reaction was no — what a worthy and important topic but since the stigma is still so strong with cannabis, I did not want to touch the issue of illicit drugs and toxic supply. In my mind, these issues do not intersect. The BC cannabis industry is legal, our products are safe, and highly regulated, whereas the illicit drug crisis is fueled by organized crime, and toxic supply. How could we possibly help?
That night I was taking my youngest son to the driving range and I couldn’t stop thinking about BC’s illicit drug overdose crisis and questioning why it felt safer or easier for me to avoid associating Muse’s brand with a conference that is striving to have open discussions to find solutions. When it comes to work and life, I believe having hard conversations is always better than avoiding them and this should be no different. I ended up doing a full 180 and Muse is now proudly a part of ‘Let’s Talk Overdose.’
How can we keep looking away when, according to the latest BC Coroners Report, more than 200 people died in January alone. That’s 6.7 deaths a day. It’s time to talk about solutions and explore how the legal cannabis community can step up to help. For us, it’s having the hard conversation about the illicit drug overdose crisis with each other, within our stores, and our community, and we look forward to learning more at the conference.
Please join us at the virtual Let's Talk Overdose conference on April 6 & 7 to learn about the impacts of the ongoing opioid overdose crisis and co-create solutions. This free event will bring together over 2000 people over two days to share knowledge and create consensus on the next steps. To learn more and register, visit bit.ly/ltod22
