and Here's Why . . .

Collateral Damage from the War on Cannabis

By The Rev. Mary Moreno-Richardson

As an Episcopal priest, I have served for more than 25 years throughout California as a chaplain in detention centers, as a drug/alcohol counselor, as a delegate to the United Nations on the issue of trafficking and the War on Drugs, and as a mental health clinician working with victims of human trafficking.

I have seen the obscene abuse on the poor and people of color in our courts and jails because of the War on Cannabis.

I heard the stories of so many children who were taken from their parents because of cannabis, resulting in families permanently broken. I have seen the bias of drug policies that fuel mass incarceration for generations of communities of color.

People ask, “But, what about the children?” Alcohol, in my experience, is the most violent drug in our society. I have taught court-mandated domestic violence classes for abusers. Alcohol was the major cause of the violence. Ask any law enforcement officer and they will tell you the horror stories of the effects of alcohol on families and communities.

I have seen seniors, cancer Cannabis growers are eager and able patients with medical prescriptions to help. They are a part of the community; for cannabis, arrested in their own Criminalization does not protect however the demonization of cannabis homes for the use of cannabis. Their our children. NO ONE wants continues. homes invaded and destroyed by children to use drugs or alcohol, raids. Infirm and ill seniors, who can but if you were to send me (a 69-year-old woman) to a barely make it to the front door, slammed to the ground and public park with a 15-year-old teenage girl, guess who dragged off to detention centers. Having to hire attorneys would be offered the free joint? Not me. And that “joint” may to save them from sentencing. All because the state and the very well be full of mold, pesticides, and other toxins. federal government are at odds on cannabis.

Santa Barbara County has responsible farmers, cultivating an organic crop for sale in a strictly regulated market. Still, anti-cannabis groups continue coming after every grower in the county. Twenty years ago, local residents complained about the wine encroaching on the Santa Ynez Valley. Specific fears were an increase in traffic and drunk drivers. Now the wine industry is an accepted part of the landscape.

All of us know all too well how much support is needed for community services. Cannabis growers are eager and able to help. They are a part of the community; however the demonization of cannabis continues.

I have heard, “But it’s too close to churches.” Yet we serve alcohol in many churches as part of the service, dinners, and parties. Not to mention alcohol is offered to children in a chalice. But this is acceptable?

The positive opportunities of cannabis for Santa Barbara County, and other localities, include keeping a rich agricultural heritage vibrant, good paying jobs, and a tax base for public services.

In closing I’d like to add, Jesus may have changed water into wine, but God created cannabis. Amen.