By Katie Gibas
BUFFALO, N.Y. – First medical
marijuana, now many New Yorkers are pushing to decriminalize the drug
completely, but not for the reasons you may think.
"I personally believe recreational use can have a bad effect on
families, however, what really has a bad effect on families has been the
enforcement of the marijuana possession laws in New York State,"
said Sarah Buckley, RN, a spokesperson for the WNY Communication Workers
of America Council.
Buckley was one of many people to speak at a public hearing on a bill that would decriminalize marijuana.
Downstate Senator Liz Krueger and Assemblywoman Crystal
Peoples-Stokes have introduced the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation
Act, which would legalize the drug for people over the age of 21. They
say the cost of criminalization of the drug is too great compared to the
benefits.
"When you drive it underground, that's when you get really high
costs. It's doesn't work. It creates this violent illegal economy that
destroys neighborhoods and families," said Sam Magavern, the Partnership
for the Public Good Coordinator.
"The ACLU discovered in a 2013 report that marijuana arrests cost New
York State approximately $675 million per year," Kassandra Frederique, a
Drug Policy Alliance Policy Manager said. "In a time where we are all
going through budget cuts and trying to figure out how we can use our
resources, we know that this is way too big of an expense."
The legislation would regulate and tax marijuana similar to tobacco and alcohol.
"We put rules on who can use it, where they can buy it. What the
rules are for the production and sale of it," Senator Liz Krueger said
“We have lost the war and in the process of losing the war, we have
literally lost communities,” Stokes said. “Families have been destroyed.
Children have been without parents and we have spent a lot of money,
not just in the criminal justice system, but in the social network for
those families after they lost their members to incarceration.”
There would be licensed retailers, and individuals could only
purchase two ounces or grow up to six plants for personal consumption.
Resale would be illegal, as would smoking Marijuana in public. Places
could apply for licenses to be marijuana "bars" that would allow smoking
at the establishment.
Municipalities could also vote to not allow marijuana there at all.
"The biggest argument that I've personally heard is that it's a
gateway drug, which is the furthest thing from the truth," Stokes said.
"If you look at our last two former presidents as well as our current
president, they have all acknowledged publicly that they smoked
marijuana before when they were in college. It did not drive them to
become drug abusers."
Dr. Gale Burstein, the Erie County Health Commissioner, says
marijauana consumption can be very harmfuls for adolescence who partake.
“Medical research demonstrates that marijuana is very harmful to
adolescent health and development," Burstein said in a statement.
"Recreational marijuana use in adolescents can cause mental health
problems, decrease lung function, lead to substance abuse disorders,
increase use of other illicit drugs, and decrease the likelihood of
completing high school or obtaining a college degree.
Contrary to common
belief, marijuana can be addictive. The American Academy of Pediatrics
opposes legalization of marijuana because of the potential harms to
children and adolescents. Research has shown that any policy that leads
to increased marijuana use by adults, such as legalization, leads to
increased access for adolescents, despite age restrictions. Short and
long term recreational marijuana use in adolescents can cause a higher
likelihood of drug dependence or addiction in adulthood.”
Even though New York is relatively progressive and has approved
medial marijuana, advocates admit, this legislation could still be years
away.
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