MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION AT THE PUBLIC LIBRARY

Drug reform activists and members of the community discussed cannabis
legalization at the Calgary Public Library theatre last Friday.

Sponsored by the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana
Laws Canada and Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, the event was
part of a cross-Canada tour designed to build public awareness of
drug law issues and construct a policy document to be presented to
the federal government later this year.

"We've been asking a lot of people what models they think are
appropriate for legal cannabis and the most common answer is the
alcohol model," said NORML Canada executive director Marc-Boris
St-Maurice, who moderated the event. "You can make beer and wine at
home, but if you want to sell it, you have to meet certain criteria,
with some differences. Obviously beer is not marijuana, but generally
that's what we've been hearing most and that's probably the model we
should be looking at."

On the panel was writer and editor Lisa Kirkman, local activist Keith
Fagin, former police officer and Libertarian Party of Canada leader
Dennis Young, legalization advocate Jim Hilsenteger and federal
medicinal cannabis recipient Grant Cluff.

While all panelists were in favour of changing the existing laws in
some way, much of the evening revolved around actual implementation
of new policy.

Discussions highlighted the economic, medicinal and social justice
factors surrounding the plant.

"In the States, there are over four million children whose parents
are in prison on a drug-related charge," said Hilsenteger, who argued
that the American-led war on drugs is extremely costly for our
system. "[Children with parents in prison] have a seven-to-one chance
of ending up in prison themselves," he added.

Calgary was the seventh stop in the 14-city tour, which wraps up its
first run later this month.