I am currently pursuing my master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling, as my future profession is that of an addiction counselor. So this viewpoint I am about to share is very personal, as it will one day affect me. It already has in other parts and times of my life, and this is why I feel cannabis should be legalized.
As an individual who has been an unjust casualty to this “war on cannabis,” I have been in this situation and know from experience what it’s like to go through the “system” for five years of my life. Allow me to now present you with a situation. This excerpt is based on true stories I have personally witnessed.
Steve is arrested at age 25 for possession of a gram of marijuana. Steve generally smokes once or twice on the weekend and has had many periods of abstinence. (We know, and Steve has admitted, he is not addicted in any way to cannabis.) When Steve goes in front of the judge, the judge offers Steve the option of going to treatment or going to jail. Steve obviously takes the plea bargain of going to treatment over jail.
George is an addiction counselor at the local treatment center. His classroom fits 10 people, and he currently has nine attendees. Steve is sent to his office. As Steve arrives, so does Jake, a 38-year-old heroin addict who after 20 years finally wants to get off drugs and really desires George’s help. Jake begs for George to help him, but as George stands there with Steve and Jake, he must politely turn to Jake and tell him that he has to leave and can come back at another time to try to get a seat when one opens up.
This can easily lead to an individual not coming back and continuing to use drugs. I have witnessed this multiple times.
George currently does not have any room in his class to fit Jake, as he is being forced to admit Steve into his group. Steve has clearly stated he is not addicted to cannabis, does no other drugs and is an outstanding citizen in our community, yet he is forced into drug treatment, filling up a seat that could have been used for someone who truly needs and desires it.
Not only is the government forcing innocent, harmless people to fill up spaces in treatment centers all over the U.S., but it is doing so at the cost of the American people — George the counselor works at a state-run facility, so he is paid by your tax dollars. Would you rather your tax dollars be used to “baby-sit” people like Steve, who clearly does not need to be there, or Jake, who begs George for help out of the grips of a serious and debilitating addiction?
My life is surrounded by so many individuals affected negatively by this war on cannabis. It’s time to end the war and get on with helping out our fellow human beings.
Help educate; don’t incarcerate.
— Christopher Kimble, Director of Communications of Columbia NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws)