• Home
  • MJNews @PRNewswire
  • MJChannelOne
  • MJBA.net
  • MJHeadlineNews
  • Subscribe
  • Advertise
  • MJBA PR

MJNews Network

"The Voice of Legal Cannabis Since 2013"

  • Home
  • Business
  • MJNews by PRNewswire
  • Legal
  • Events
  • BlPOC in Cannabis
  • MJBAPR
  • MJAdnet
You are here: Home / Politics / Good Reason to Legalize Marijuana

Good Reason to Legalize Marijuana

August 16, 2013 by MJ News Network 1 Comment

Posted by John C. Liu

NEW YORK: It’s time to recognize that New York City’s misguided war on marijuana has failed. Instead of spending millions on low-level drug prosecutions that disproportionately affect minorities, why not instead legalize, regulate, and tax the City’s $1.65 billion marijuana market?

A comprehensive report by my office shows that legalizing, regulating, and taxing marijuana could generate more than $400 million annually for the City, money that could be used to cut CUNY tuition in half for New York City residents. Instead of sending kids to the courthouse, let’s send them to college.

The social arguments for legalizing marijuana are compelling. Minority communities disproportionately bear the consequences of marijuana arrests in New York City, which are directly related to the NYPD’s rampant use of stop and frisk. Combined, blacks and Hispanics make up 45 percent of marijuana users in New York City, but they account for 86 percent of misdemeanor possession arrests.  By contrast, whites and Asians constitute 55 percent of users but only 14 percent of arrests.

That’s just not fair.

An arrest for the possession of even a small amount of pot can have serious consequences. More than half of marijuana possession arrests in New York City are of people age 25 and under — a group for whom the negative effects of an arrest or criminal record is especially acute. Convictions can affect people’s eligibility for federal student loans and NYCHA housing, and a history of arrest can bar them from many jobs.

Low-level marijuana arrests have skyrocketed during Mayor Bloomberg’s Administration and are directly related to the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk strategy. Since Mayor Bloomberg took office in 2002, there have been almost 460,000 misdemeanor marijuana arrests. The number of these arrests is on track to reach 37,000 in 2013 alone.

Bottom line: the City’s war on marijuana has been misguided and has damaged far too many lives, especially in minority communities. Like prohibition, it has been a complete failure.

Regulating marijuana would keep thousands of New Yorkers out of the criminal justice system, offer relief to those suffering from a wide range of painful medical conditions, and make our streets safer by sapping the dangerous underground market that targets our children. As if that weren’t enough, it would also boost the City’s bottom line.

Under my proposal, adults age 21 and over could possess up to one ounce of marijuana, which would be grown, processed, and sold by government-licensed businesses for recreational or medicinal purposes.

This change won’t happen overnight. We should create an interagency task force to work with the State Senate and Assembly in order to pass the legislation needed to implement the plan.

New York needs to legalize marijuana and put an end to modern-day prohibition.

John C. Liu is the New York City Comptroller.

Read full article @ Carroll Gardens Patch

Filed Under: Politics Tagged With: decriminalization, end of federal prohibition, John C. Liu is the New York City Comptroller., legalization, New York City Mayor Candidate

About MJ News Network

Trackbacks

  1. MJ News Network | The Road To Legalizing Medical Marijuana In New York says:
    September 8, 2013 at 8:02 AM

    […] growing sites, and requiring insurance providers to cover medical marijuana. I stood alongside Comptroller Liu to share my own story of a patient with metastatic cancer who traveled to Arizona in order to […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Connect with Us!

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo
  • YouTube

Top Stories

Cannabis Conference & Cannabis Business Times to Present Tommy Chong With Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award

NEVADA: Cannabis Conference and award-winning media brand Cannabis Business Times are excited to announce Tommy Chong as their inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. The award, which recognizes Chong’s many contributions to the industry, will be presented at a special Cannabis Leadership Awards reception—made possible with the generous support of FOHSE – Future of Horticultural Science + Engineering—Aug. Read the full article…

GKUA + Weedmaps + Young Money = The 1st GKUA VIP Party Series with Mellow Rackz

“GKUA teamed up with Weedmaps, the party sponsor, to give away VIP tickets at dispensaries across the Bay Area. Weedmaps is connecting visitors to dispensaries offering GKUA products and tickets to this inaugural GKUA VIP Party.”- GKUA By Veronica Castillo You may have seen her on the red carpet at the BET Awards in 2022, Read the full article…

BE Cultivation and Provisions: Jungle Healing, Jungle Love, and the Giveaway Tour; Hear from Dreka Gates and the Team at BE

By Veronica Castillo MICHIGAN: On July 7, 2022, business owner, actress, producer, and woman in cannabis Dreka Gates, announced the launch of two product lines: Jungle Healing and Jungle Love. Jungle Healing is a hemp-derived CBD line of products available across the country. Jungle Love is a full line of THC-cannabis products in the Michigan Read the full article…

OLCC and Oregon Dept. of Agriculture Webinar – Agricultural Farm Labor Housing in Oregon

The OLCC is sharing this information provided from a partner agency. What is the webinar about? ODA and OLCC are hosting a webinar on agricultural farm labor housing requirements.  Sarah Rew, with OSHA, will be presenting on requirements and who must meet the requirements.  She will additionally touch on new heat and wildfire smoke rules. Read the full article…

WSLCB Board Action: Proposed Rules Filed for Amendments and New Rule Sections to Establish the Social Equity in Cannabis Program.

WASHINGTON:  On August 3, 2022, during a regularly scheduled meeting, the Liquor and Cannabis Board took the following action: Proposed rules filed – public comment period now open: Approved proposed rulemaking (CR 102) regarding amendments to existing rules and a new rule section that would establish the Social Equity in Cannabis program in response to recommendations Read the full article…

GKUA + Weedmaps + Young Money = The 1st GKUA VIP Party Series with Mellow Rackz

BE Cultivation and Provisions: Jungle Healing, Jungle Love, and the Giveaway Tour; Hear from Dreka Gates and the Team at BE

OLCC and Oregon Dept. of Agriculture Webinar – Agricultural Farm Labor Housing in Oregon

Tags

CA California Canada cannabis cannabis news CBD changing attitudes CO Colorado DC decriminalization dispensary District of Columbia end failed war on drugs end of failed war on drugs failed war on drugs Hemp I-502 legal cannabis legalization legal marijuana legal pot shop marijuana marijuana business medical cannabis medical marijuana mjlegal mjnews MJNews Network mjnewsnetwork.com mmj New York NORML NY OH Ohio OR Oregon politicians on pot recreational marijuana the business of cannabis the business of marijuana WA Washington WSLCB

Search By State:

  • Alabama
  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Hawaii
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Mississippi
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • Nebraska
  • Nevada
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • South Carolina
  • South Dakota
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Utah
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington
  • West Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • Wyoming

© Copyright 2014 MJBA Publishing · MJ News Network · All Rights Reserved ·