U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley speaks at an April 17 press conference arguing for cannabis ... [+]
“4/20” is the nickname assigned the annual April 20 holiday celebrating cannabis with parties, munchies and other stoner pastimes. But this year’s 4/20 is also the occasion for serious political action on Capitol Hill.
“Let’s make it clear: Cannabis should be legalized,” U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., said Wednesday in a press conference outside the Capitol. The Congresswoman denounced what she called “a mass incarceration crisis that has ravaged our communities, destabilized our families and inflicted generational trauma . . .it is the result of generations of what I would characterize as policy violence.”
Pressley continued: “As policy maintenance, we have the opportunity and obligation to disrupt the cycle.”
A bipartisan array of organizations’ leaders joined Pressley in denouncing the fact that cannabis is a booming industry even as an estimated 32,000 Americans remain imprisoned in state and federal facilities for nonviolent, victim-less cannabis offenses. Clemency for past offenses remains elusive for 8,000 more.
Pressley called for the passage of proposed legislation to reschedule cannabis from the DEA’s current Schedule I status (covering heroin, and LSD) to Schedule III, a determination of “low potential for abuse” and of physical dependence, and the acceptance of cannabis for medical use.
Other speakers called for the elimination of even a Schedule III status for cannabis. President Biden, who in 2022 announced a mass pardon for federal cannabis possession, came in for criticism for not getting those prisoners actually released.
The press conference was prelude to a “Unity Day of Action” on April 18, involving lobbying lawmakers in Congress and holding a candlelight vigil. Speakers today came from organizations like The Last Prisoner Project (LPP), NORML, the Drug Policy Alliance, the Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association, and more – including a student group and a libertarian one. Speakers stood at a podium adorned with a “Decriminalize Now” logo complete with a cannabis leaf.
One of the more moving statements came from ex-offender Kyle Page: “When I started my six-year sentence [in Kansas], my daughter was 12 years old,” he said. “I came home, she was 19. We didn’t know each other anymore. Even though we talked on the phone every day, that physical contact [was] not there between father and daughter. But we got that back. This system threw dirt on me but they didn’t realize that I was a flower . . . right now we’re going to fight the scheduling, we’re going to fight for reparations for cannabis, we’re going to fight for reform, expungement and everything. I want everyone here to fight with us, okay?”
Other statements from the press conference:
Sarah Gersten, executive director of the Last Prisoner Project: “At the same time that white, mostly wealthy individuals are able to profit off cannabis, and states are raking in billions of dollars in tax revenues off regulated markets, thousands are sitting in prisons. And we still have more cannabis arrests today than for all violent crimes combined. That injustice needs to end.”
From Frederika McClary Easley, vice president of the Minority Business Cannabis Association, speaking about her members: “We don’t have access to traditional banking and lending and are having to deal as cash businesses. Families are suffering because breadwinners are paying back-breaking taxes and fees. . . In 2022, under 280(e) [of the IRS Code], state legal cannabis companies paid more than $1.8 billion in excess taxes compared to non-cannabis businesses. Our business owners are paying more and getting less, and the time to stop that is now.”
From Morgan Fox, political director of NORML: “We must fight to clear criminal records and provide resources to people who have been most directly impacted, in order to begin making up for the injustices they’ve suffered. We must fight against the policies, practices and philosophies that perpetuate discrimination against cannabis consumers in areas like employment, housing, education and elsewhere that still exist even in places where cannabis is legal.”
