International Poppers Day 5. April

World Poppers Day is on 5 April and poppers fans around the world celebrate International Poppers Day. International Poppers Day was established by Eric Hassan, a New Yorker, in 2019. Eric is nicknamed the “Godfather of Poppers” in many circles. We wanted to know more about International Poppers Day and more about Eric Hassan and met him for an interview.

Eric, how did you come up with the idea of the International Poppers Day?

As someone who is fairly prominent in the world of poppers, I’ve always thought they are a great way to bring people together – just think about the bond you feel when you have a new sex partner and he brings a bottle of poppers!

One day in 2019 I was talking to a friend and mentioned that there seems to be a day to honor nearly everything (coffee, grandparents, donuts) but there wasn’t a day to celebrate poppers. My friend suggested that I could create that and advised me to pick a date a few months away to allow for planning. I chose April 5 because I used to joke that my birthday should be a holiday and I saw this as a chance to make that happen! I also figured I wouldn’t forget it and it would mean a lot to me to mark my birthday with a celebration of the poppers brotherhood.

How did the International Poppers Day evolve over the last 5 years since 2019?

At first, it was mostly an online celebration where I celebrated the day with my followers. I wanted it to grow organically – for men to tell other men about it, to seek connections with other Poppers users to share the joy. I decided that if one person I didn’t know and who didn’t follow me mentioned it, and if a Poppers company mentioned it, I would consider it a success. Both of those happened the second year around!

Since then, the campaign has continued to develop and now involves even more people. It has also developed to the point where people ask me how they should celebrate and that they become active themselves and make their own celebrations. It’s so lovely to see so many guys get excited about International Poppers Day and to see all the ways they celebrate.

Personally, I would like to make more of this day in the future. It’s hard because it’s just a single day, and it takes a lot to even get noticed with all the background noise of life. But the way I see it, the more the message spreads, the more guys join the community, the more we will all be uplifted.

How would you like to see the International Poppers Day in 2050?

I would like to see International Poppers Day in 2050 no longer needed because we have prioritized the harmful effects, investigated safety and decriminalized or legalized poppers everywhere. I would like to see a world where poppers are regulated in the same way as tobacco or alcohol.

What is your favorite Poppers or Poppers Formula?

That’s a very, very difficult question! For years I was able to buy poppers in stores here in NYC. Over the years, without the regulations that personal use products are subject to, the quality of what you can get in a retail store has gone down to the point where I actively advise people NOT to buy poppers in stores unless you are familiar with what to look for to determine quality.

JJ Black is a long-term favorite of mine. There are others I like better but this was the first one where I was so impressed by my experience that it was my only brand for years. I also enjoy PL-100 and PL-200 from Video Head Cleaner. They’re on the pricy side, but they are more than worth it. Few poppers are as smooth and pack as much of a punch as the ones from Video Head Cleaners.The Everest is outstanding as well.

Do you use sniffer caps like Super Sniffer or XTRM Leakproof?

I love them! It’s about time that folks addressed how difficult a small bottle and screw-on cap can be when you’re in the middle of a good bate session! That said, I don’t use them often and that is ONLY because I’ve been huffing poppers for 25 years without them. It’s a habit to not have them and frankly, I’d like to start making it a habit to use them. The advantages I see to these types of products include reduced air exposure, reduced fume loss, reduced spills, reduced risk of chemical burns and they’re a great way to direct the fumes exactly where you need them!

How do you think people should choose an online shop for Poppers?

There are many options, depending on what is important to you. A good place to start is to familiarize yourself with the different offers. Do a Google search. Read what poppers friends are writing about on Reddit, Telegram, Twitter, etc. to find recommendations on what to look out for or what you should know. Then check out those stores. See which stores offer the formulations you want in the sizes you want. Check the prices. Take shipping costs and times into account. Then make your choice. It’s important to remember that YOUR experience with poppers is YOUR experience. How you react to the different formulations depends on many factors. The best way to find out what works for you and what doesn’t is to try it out. You can ask a million people, “What’s the best poppers for getting fucked?” or “What’s the strongest poppers?” and you’ll get a million answers – none of which are YOURS.

What do you think of legalization in different parts of the world of Poppers as Poppers?

Legislation that provides for anything less than full legalization is unjustified, scientifically unsound, arbitrary, ridiculously puritanical, homophobic, sexphobic, unnecessary, and ineffective. There are numerous substances that are abused with far greater effect and far less regulation, and there is no rational argument that a reasonable adult can make for banning poppers use.

There is already a community of poppers users who purchase and use poppers recreationally. There is already a body of anecdotal evidence and inciental scientific evidence that tells us how poppers work and how we can use them as safely as possible within the limits of what we know about them. This community exists NOW and has been around for decades.

What we need are well-designed scientific studies on the effects of poppers. There must be campaigns to limit harmful effects, based on the health of the population. There must be adequate restrictions to ensure safety. There must be safe, reliable sources from which people can obtain accurate information.

Making something illegal because you don’t like it or don’t care about the people who do, without actual proof that there’s sufficient danger to the community, and without any willingness to inquire on the truth is both an unfortunate commonality in governing today but is also lazy and careless leadership, usually excused by hiding behind religion and falsely claiming children are in danger.

There are countries that have legalized poppers in some form or another. I appreciate the process they went through to make that happen, and how – even if it’s just in one small way – they manage to not let fear win.

26.03.2024

You can find more information about Eric Hassan at www.thedudenextdoor.com or on Twitter/X at https://twitter.com/EricHassanXXX.