On Jan. 4, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Cole Memo, an Obama-era rule instructing federal law enforcement not to obstruct state-sanctioned sale and use of legalized cannabis. The Obama rule was put in place even though the federal government still considers marijuana to be a Schedule I narcotic, which puts it at the same level as heroin.
Oregon decriminalized small amounts of pot for personal use in 1969, then legalized medical marijuana in 1998 and in a 2014 statewide vote authorized adults to own, grow and consume weed recreationally.
We asked Ashlanders what they thought of the crackdown on pot by the Trump Administration.
Christine Crawley — It’s a travesty against our rights. We Oregonians have followed the law and voted democratically for the rights we have. King Sessions decided to usurp our rights. Outraged is a polite word for how I feel. If the feds do this and interfere with our state’s rights, there will be hell to pay for it. They don’t have the moral right to disrespect this state’s rights, just as it’s our duty to honor federal laws, but not these enacted by just our bozo president and his like-minded team.
Sam Bauman — Jeff Sessions is evil … he is the devil’s little helper. It’s outrageous. No substance should ever be illegalized. Nature is being illegalized…I am an anarchist and I don’t subscribe to government at all. All that they do is criminal and the U.S. is leading the way as a prototype for a world order. The powers that be are killing the planet.
Oona Meade — I felt that by legalizing marijuana, we are taking a step in a more enlightened direction, instead of shutting ourselves off, as we are with this puritanism that has been disproven by history. I’m saddened to hear that some old white dudes are setting us in a direction that, history shows, is not working. They will not be going away, but people will always choose to use.
Deanna Stollings — It sounds like they want their cake and to eat it, too, by arguing state’s rights when it’s convenient for them … . It seems they are opening themselves up for a costly legal fight that will not be fruitful. In the short term, what we have is anger. I’m not in favor of this.
Kate Wenzell (declined photo) — It’s ridiculous. At the Rainbow gathering in Eastern Oregon, rangers confiscated pot because they said it was on federal land … . it’s so corrupt to criminalize it. It’s lucrative for them, building up the prison-industrial and pharma-industrial complex. It’s just oppression. They couldn’t wait to get their hooks into the hippies. One (hippie) had a seizure and they took his CBD, trampling on his rights to access health care.
Chava Slorendo (declined photo) — It’s a very archaic rule and a waste of everyone’s money to prosecute people and especially to lodge them. It’s silly.