Monthly Archives: May 2021

On this edition of Your Call, we rebroadcast our conversation with award-winning filmmaker Stanley Nelson about his new Netflix documentary, Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy. Nelson looks back on how the crack epidemic of the early 1980s decimated Black and Brown communities.

The epidemic fueled racial and economic inequality, hyper-aggressive policing, mass incarceration, and government corruption at the highest levels. Nelson says we need to expose the truth about the past in order to change policies.

Guest:

Stanley Nelson, Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker and founder of Firelight Media. Stanley is a MacArthur Genius Fellow and recipient of the National Medal in the Humanities. Some of his films include Freedom Riders, The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution and The Murder of Emmett Till

Web Resources:

Netflix: Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy

The Guardian, Beatrice Loayza: 'The war on drugs funded policing': behind a Netflix documentary about crack

Bloom&Oil, Zack Ruskin: Netflixs Crack Reveals Americas War on Drugs Was Really a War on People

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'Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy' Exposes The Truth About The War On Drugs - KALW

On Thursday, a bill that would decriminalize psychedelic drugs will move forward to a full vote of the California State Senate after passing the Senate Appropriations Committee in a 5-2 vote.

The bill was introduced back in February by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) which he stated that SB 519 reverses outdated War on Drugs policies criminalizing substances that help treat conditions like depression, anxiety and PTSD. The bill will be heard by June 4th. If passed, it will then move on to the State Assembly.

According to the bill, it would decriminalize the possession and personal use for the following: dimethyltryptamine (DMT), ibogaine (psychedelic substance), ketamine, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), mescaline (psychedelic hallucinogen), psilocybin (magic mushrooms), and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy, molly) possession for personal use and social sharing.

SB 519 also expunges any criminal records for people convicted of possession or personal use of these substances. And, SB 519 establishes a commission charged with producing recommendations to the Legislature regarding which regulatory system they recommend California adopt regulations for personal use of these specified substances in the future.

This legislation follows similar, successful efforts to decriminalize these substances in Washington, D.C., Oakland, and Santa Cruz, as well as the successful 2020 Oregon ballot measures that decriminalized personal use of all scheduled substances, and authorized the creation of a state-licensed, psilocybin services program over the next two years.

Most of our current drug policies stem from the War on Drugs a failed set of racist policies starting in the early 20th century and accelerating in the 1970s and 1980s, established under the guise of addressing addiction and drug dealing. The War on Drugs, rather than addressing the root causes of substance use disorder and mental illness, instead criminalized addiction and helped create our current system of racist mass incarceration, which disproportionately punishes Black, brown and low-income communities for low-level, nonviolent drug-related offenses. Senator Wiener believes that California needs to ultimately decriminalize all drug use and possession.

Despite their current classification as Schedule I drugs, psychedelics have shown potential in treating mental health issues like depression, anxiety, and PTSD, and have also demonstrated benefits for end-of-life care. According to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Schedule I drugs have no accepted medical use and high potential for abuse, and possession and use of Schedule I drugs comes with higher penalties than Schedule II or III. Ketamine is the only psychedelic substance classified as Schedule III, and it has now been approved to treat depression. The drug classification system is another relic of the War on Drugs era, is anti-science and criminalizes drug use, even when this approach has clearly failed for the last 50 years.

Recent clinical trials studying MDMA as a treatment for PTSD led the FDA to distinguish MDMA-assisted therapy as a Breakthrough Therapy: two-thirds of study participants no longer qualified as having PTSD after experiencing MDMA-assisted therapy. In a 2018 clinical trial, MDMA treatment showed promise in treating chronic Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in military veterans, firefighters, and police officers. In a 2020 study, MDMA used in combination with therapy showed the potential to reduce anxiety in patients facing life-threatening illnesses.

In both 2018 and 2019, the FDA issued Breakthrough Therapy distinction to psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms). In two different clinical trials, psilocybin was shown to reduce symptoms in patients with treatment-resistant depression. A John Hopkins study showed a decrease in depression and anxiety in cancer patients using psilocybin, and another showed promise for smoking cessation. There is also research indicating that LSD may be an effective treatment for anxiety and alcoholism. Observational studies have also documented the use of ayahuasca (which contains DMT) and ibogaine as potential treatments for substance use disorder.

A year into the COVID-19 pandemic, our mental health crisis is worsening. With so many dealing with unemployment and financial distress, a lack of community and social interaction, and loss of friends or family to COVID-19 anxiety, depression, overdose and suicide rates are up across the country. And with prisons and jails serving as COVID-19 hotspots, its critical that we look to alternatives to criminalizing and incarcerating people who are using psychedelics to heal. SB 519 is a critical reform that acknowledges the reality of our mental health crisis, the proven potential psychedelics have shown in treating mental illness, and the failure of the current punitive approach to substance use, mental health and public health and safety.

SB 519 is co-sponsored by Heroic Hearts Project, an organization that connects veterans to psychedelic therapy for treating complex trauma. In the past few years, Heroic Hearts has become an international voice for veterans demanding effective mental health treatment options. It is also co-sponsored by Veterans Exploring Treatment Solutions (VETS), an organization working to end the veteran suicide epidemic. VETS provides resources, research, and advocacy for U.S. military veterans seeking psychedelic-assisted therapies for traumatic brain injury (TBI), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction, and other mental health conditions.

SB 519 is co-authored by Assemblymembers Evan Low (D-San Jose) and Sydney Kamlager (D-Los Angeles), and Bill Quirk (D-Hayward).

SB 519 focuses on decriminalization and ending the war on drugs and studying a system for responsible access to psychedelics that maximizes health and safety. SB 519 does not imagine a cannabis model or lay a foundation for retail trade in psychedelics; rather, it proposes to end the failed War on Drugs approach to addressing psychedelics while building on the science and research in the psychedelic field to create the potential for a therapeutic framework that could help people struggling from the effects of depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other health conditions.

Policy should be based on science and common sense, not fear and stigma, said Senator Wiener. The War on Drugs and mass incarceration are destructive and failed policies, and we must end them. Moreover, given the severity of our mental health crisis, we shouldnt be criminalizing people for using drugs that have shown significant promise in treating mental health conditions. People should be able to seek alternative treatment for diseases like anxiety, depression, and PTSD, and we need to make science-based treatments available to those in need. Cities like Washington, D.C. and states like Oregon have led the way, and now its Californias turn.

This bill is part of a larger push to end the failed War on Drugs, which has disproportionately harmed underserved communities of color, said Assemblymember Evan Low. This legislationcould offer scientists opportunities to make groundbreaking progress in understanding how to help people who suffer from anxiety and post-traumatic stress. Our bill helps to lead us on a path to decriminalizing substance abuse so we can focus on providing addiction treatment instead of paying for jail cells and ignoring the larger problem.

We all must come together to stand up for those that have put their lives on the line for this country, said Heroic Hearts Project founder, Jesse Gould. Psychedelic-assisted treatments have the potential to save countless veteran lives and we as American citizens have an obligation to listen to the needs of these warriors.

Veteran healthcare and suicide risk is a national crisis, and we believe that psychedelic treatments with trained faciiltators can help. As an organization that helps connect veterans in need to psychedelic therapy and healing, we have seen first hand the difference it can make in the life of a veteran suffering from trauma, said Veterans Exploring Treatment Options (VETS) co-founder Amber Capone. By passing SB 519, California can take the first step in providing veterans and others access to the psychedelic treatment that has made a profound difference in our lives and the lives of thousands of veterans around the country.

As a brain tumor specialist, many of my patients have malignant brain tumors and ultimately succumb to their illness, said David F. Kelly, M.D., a physician who provides end-of-life care for terminally ill patients. At Pacific Neuroscience Institute we also treat numerous patients with other serious and often terminal neurological disorders including dementia, stroke, Parkinsons disease and multiple sclerosis. As such, I am a strong advocate for the safe and judicious use of psychedelic-assisted therapies in the appropriate setting for patients with chronic and terminal illnesses. There is now ample evidence from clinical trials completed over the last decade showing that psilocybin is safe and remarkably effective in relieving anxiety and depression in this patient population.

We are in a mental health pandemic, and the causes of trauma are multiplying faster than the solutions, said Lauren Taus, LCSW, and a Ketamine-Assisted Therapy practitioner. As a licensed therapist, I have seen how psychedelic assisted therapies can accelerate the healing process and create breakthroughs for people in need when all other methods fail. I currently provide ketamine assisted therapy, and I know that profound transformational changes can happen when trained clinicians use psychedelics in a thoughtful and regulated way. Decriminalization combined with a well structured therapy program can help end the criminalization of healing while creating a true opportunity to provide effective treatment to individuals suffering from depression, anxiety, trauma and countless other mental health conditions.

In 2017, I began working with individuals at the end of their lives who were seeking closure, healing and forgiveness, mostly of themselves, said Kat Kurner, End of Life Guide, who serves on the Decriminalize Nature Council of Elders and is a member of the Cherokee Nation. Psilocybin mushrooms are truly magical when treating end of life anxiety and it has been my honor and privilege to sit with people at this most challenging time of their lives. I work with veterans suffering from PTSD, drug addicts who are trying to heal, and I work with people who are suffering from treatment resistant depression and anxiety. Over the years I have bared witness to the incredible healing powers of our plant allies. To think that I could go to prison for doing the work I do is not only terrifying, its immoral.

Drug decriminalization is a necessary first step to repairing the harms from the decades-long public health disaster of the War on Drugs, said Natalie Lyla Ginsberg, MSW, director of policy & advocacy at the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). Criminalization has failed to deter drug use over the last 50 years, drug use has actually increased. However, in countries like Portugal where drug policies have shifted from a criminal justice to a public health centered approach, drug-related deaths and illnesses have dropped dramatically.

Psychedelic use can come with some risks, but criminalization only increases those risks by creating an unregulated market in which difficult-to-verify dosages and the presence of adulterants like fentanyl threaten public health, said Ismail Lourido Ali, JD, policy & advocacy counsel at MAPS. Decriminalizing harm reduction interventions like substance analysis may save lives with its potential to prevent accidental overdoses.

Psychedelics, with proper guidance and under the right conditions have the potential to help heal great psychological and spiritual harms, especially within marginalized communities, said Ayize Jama, M.Div, M.A., M.F.A, and Chief Members Steward at the Sacred Garden Community Church in Oakland. The continued criminalization of substances that prove more effective in dealing with intergenerational and systemic trauma than pharmaceuticals seems to be the real crime. As an African-American community minister and a therapist, Ive borne witness to entheogens providing succor and solace to former military members, former substance abusers, those suffering from depression, and those in need of hospice care. The sooner decriminalization comes, the sooner we can start looking at how to respectfully and earnestly use entheogens to help in healing our disenfranchised communities.

We applaud Senator Wiener for his introduction to SB 519, which will decriminalize the personal possession and use of entheogenic plants and fungi, said Decriminalize Nature National Board Chair Carlos Plazola. The legislation has a strong focus on ensuring social justice and equitable access for traditionally marginalized communities, while enabling multiple modalities for mental health treatment.

(*Due to habitat loss, illegal poaching, and other cultural and environmental reasons, peyote is a threatened and protected species. SB 519 will not decriminalize peyote and does not decriminalize mescaline that is sourced from peyote.)

Information provided by Senator Scott Wiener press release in February

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Bill to Decriminalize Possession and Personal Use of Psychedelics Headed for Full Senate Vote - EastCountyToday

Founded in 1970 in the South Bronx by an alliance between the Black Panther Party, the Young Lords, and other revolutionary groups, Lincoln Detox was an attempt to provide alternative methods of drug addiction treatment. This was just as Nixons War on Drugs was revving up, which was of course in fact a war on poor people by other means on one end its been alleged that intelligence agencies funneled drugs into impoverished areas, while on the other end police incontestably used the presence of drugs as a pretense to brutalize those areas. In between were underfunded, token efforts at care for addicts. Dope Is Death tells the story not just of Lincoln Detox, but also of how that whole generation of activists and freedom fighters were continually attacked by the state for trying to build a different, better world.

Among its holistic attempts at rehabilitating addicts, the center offered experimental methods of treatment like acupuncture (a practice which the film shows successor programs still using today), as well as political education classes. The staff, which included Tupac Shakurs stepfather Mutulu Shakur, sought not merely to wean people off drugs, but to awaken them to the material conditions which caused them to be plagued with addiction in the first place. Whatever one may think of practices like acupuncture, it was certainly those efforts at shared social consciousness that brought the government hammer down on these people, and not any real concerns about public health.

Dope Is Death is available on YouTube and various VOD platforms.

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When the Black Panthers and Young Lords Teamed Up to Fight Addiction with Acupuncture - Hyperallergic

HUMBOLDT, Calif., May 19, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --Cookies' Social Impact Program, an initiative by international cannabis brand COOKIESdedicated to creating a more equitable and accessible cannabis industry, and WebberWild Impact Foundation "WebberWild," a non-profit organization that funds education and training for persons of color pursuing careers in the cannabis sector, announced today the formation of a purpose-driven partnership to provide resources and create opportunities within the cannabis industry that empower communities and people who have been marginalized.

Initially, the partners will leverage their shared resources to establish Cookies U, a high-impact, hands-on educational experience being launched in Humboldt County that will become the model for subsequent campuses across the country. Cookies Uwill recruit students from communities impacted by the War on Drugs and provide a three-month long intensive and comprehensive educational curriculum to prepare them for a sustainable career in the cannabis industry. Tuition and housing will be covered through the partnership, and eligible students can receive additional coverage for lost wages, daycare expenses, and other necessities that may otherwise make participation in the program inaccessible.

"Knowledge and hands on experience are priceless. I wouldn't be here today, in the position I'm in, if it wasn't for the 20 years of hands on experience,"said Berner, Founder and CEO of Cookies. "I started as a budtender and worked my way up. Cookies Uwill provide people from groups that have been marginalized with the opportunity to learn the Business from A-to-Z. It feels good to be in a position to share this knowledge, passion, and love for the industry with people. I truly believe this is one area that has been missing for Social Equity in cannabis."

"Not only have minorities been excessively punished and incarcerated for cannabis while others profited, but they have had unequal access to education, which perpetuates cycles of low-pay and unemployment. It is crucial that we allow those who have been impacted by the Drug War and racism to participate and benefit from the cannabis industry," said Chris Webber, entrepreneur, five-time NBA All-Star, 2021 Basketball Hall of Fame, and Co-Founder of WebberWild. "Working with Berner and Cookies allows us to diversify representation within the cannabis industry and provide people from these communities with the tools they need for long-term success."

Cookies Uparticipants will be priority hires for Cookies and also all of Cookies' partners (if they so choose) across the supply chain, including retail, cultivation, extraction and distillation, marketing and corporate finance. In addition to Cookies U, the partners will pursue other opportunities central to the mission of tearing down inequalities and creating a more accessible industry, such as community outreach, government relations, and engaging with other curriculum partners.

Students interested in applying for Cookies Ucan fill out a form online anytime from May 20-June 3 at https://www.impact.cookies.co/cookies-campus on the Cookies' Social Impact Program website. Applicants must be California residents in order to apply.

About Cookies Social Impact ProgramCookies is a cannabis brand formed by a shared vision: bringing communities together for positive impact. Cookies' Social Impact Program is comprehensive. Their mission is to target issues crucial to creating a more equitable and accessible industry. To accomplish this goal, they support social equity initiatives through public outreach, education, and reinvestment in communities negatively impacted by the War on Drugs. They partner with local organizations already making positive impacts, helping to restore the livelihood of families and individuals while providing opportunities to advance careers.

About WebberWild The WebberWild Foundation is a non-profit organization focused on training and education for persons of color pursuing careers in the cannabis sector. The foundation is affiliated with the Webber Wild Impact Fund, LPthat invests in companies led by entrepreneurs of color pursuing careers in the cannabis sector and provides them with an ecosystem of business resources that will facilitate research and development (R&D), cultivation, retail licensing, distribution, branding and marketing. The fund was co-founded by five-time NBA All-Star and 2021 Basketball Hall of Fame Chris Webber and Jason Wild, Founder and CEO of JW Asset Management.

Contact:Rosie MattioMattio Communications[emailprotected]

SOURCE WebberWild

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Cookies and WebberWild Join Forces to Launch Cookies U - PRNewswire

LOS ANGELES, May 20, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Herbarium is officially partnering with CBX to fundraise for The Last Prisoner Project and advocate for the decriminalization of cannabis. CBX Takeover, presented by Herbarium and CBX, will be held May 28th, 2021 in Herbarium's LA location.

The war on drugs and cannabis policies have left disastrous impacts in communities throughout the United States, disproportionately affecting Black and Brown people. While state and federal cannabis policies are changing, there is still a long way to go to establish and maintain equity and justice. Herbarium stands with communities of color and people who've been wrongfully imprisoned for cannabis.

"Herbarium has built itself a very strong platform where we're able to influence. We've always been at the forefront of advocacy, progression, and change. We want to bring attention to this mission and act on it. We've decided to work with one of our top partners, Cannabiotix, who shares the same values and beliefs we do. We're coming together with LPP to be a catalyst for change. Because that day will come" Adie Meiri (Founder & CEO). Herbarium has invested in a thought-provoking billboard campaign all around Los Angeles County to raise awareness and advocate for social change.

10% of CBX proceeds for the day will be donated to The Last Prisoner Project by Herbarium. Our patients and event attendees will be able to donate at the registers, to our donation boxes, or directly to The Last Prisoner Project via QR codes or http://WWW.lastprisonerproject.org. There will be flyers with information on our mission and a pen pal directory provided by The Last Prisoner Project.

We hope that our event presented by Herbarium, CBX, and The Last Prisoner Project will not only raise awareness but inspire others to act and contribute to our collective mission.

For more information on CBX Takeover, FAQs, registration, or donationsvisit http://WWW.Herbarium.LA and http://WWW.LastPrisonerProject.org.

About Herbarium

Herbarium is a California-based cannabis brand, with vertically integrated shops, committed to educate people about cannabis and its benefits, advocate for the decriminalization of cannabis, and elevate people's lifestyles and experiences. Herbarium is the only cannabis brand that caters to their clientele by constantly improving products while providing the lowest prices in the region.

HerbariumLIC#: C11-0000571979 N La Brea Ave, Los Angeles CA 90038Www.Herbarium.LA

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:Leslie Vargas, Publicist & Communications CoordinatorHerbarium617-712-5049 or [emailprotected]

SOURCE Herbarium LA

https://herbarium.la/

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Herbarium Hosts The CBX Takeover for The Last Prisoner Project - PRNewswire