Kirsten Gillibrand: It's time to legalize marijuana nationwide. Here's my plan to do it.

[brooklynite]

Medium

America’s federal prohibition of marijuana needs to end now, and it will be a top priority of my presidency.

The unfair enforcement of our current marijuana laws is a continuation of the institutional racism that has defined our criminal justice system for decades. This vestige of the War on Drugs has irreparably harmed too many lives and communities — predominantly black and brown ones.

Black Americans are more likely to be arrested for non-violent marijuana offenses than white Americans, even though use rates are roughly the same across races. And we’re talking about entire lives, families, and communities being derailed: felony convictions make it much harder to get and keep jobs, access financial loans, exercise the right to vote, travel abroad, and receive social and housing benefits.

Fully legalized marijuana is also a health care issue. Millions of Americans seek medical marijuana to treat chronic or severe pain — often in an effort to avoid prescription opioids — but access is limited by insurance coverage and availability of medical marijuana dispensaries, even in states where medical marijuana is legal. We should be expanding patients’ access to treatment they need, especially when it helps reduce addiction to dangerous medications.

[4now]

1. There always has to be a new tax