“I decided to join MPP because I believe that we will not fundamentally change policing practices in this country until we put an end to the war on drugs, and it starts with ending the prohibition on cannabis.”
Today’s addition of chronic pain to the medical cannabis program is a step forward, and will provide desperately needed relief to individuals living with debilitating pain. However, the narrow definition forces individuals to suffer for six months before qualifying, and steers them to more dangerous treatment options.
“At some point, I have to go to Cory Gardner and say, ‘Why should the industry continue to support you?’” said Marijuana Policy Project’s Don Murphy, a former Republican lawmaker in Maryland. “I know you’re trying, but you’re not getting anything.”
“Neither President Trump nor Vice President Biden have proposed a federal marijuana policy that aligns with the views of the American people,” Matthew Schweich, deputy director of the Marijuana Policy Project, told Marijuana Moment. “Anecdotal experience should never serve as the basis for making executive decisions that affect the lives of millions of Americans.”
We applaud the legislature and the governor for implementing a policy that will allow law enforcement to focus resources on more serious crimes and prevent Virginians from having their lives derailed for possessing cannabis, a substance that is safer than alcohol.
The move to decriminalize cannabis possession in Virginia is long overdue. We applaud the legislature and the governor for implementing a policy that will allow law enforcement to focus resources on more serious crimes and prevent Virginians from having their lives derailed for possessing cannabis, a substance that is safer than alcohol.
Continuing to exclude the cannabis industry from accessing basic and essential financial services during this time will result in more harm than good. Not only will it make the country’s economic recovery that much harder, but the provisions intended to help minority-owned businesses would continue to be absent within the industry.