May 8, 2018

Cynthia Nixon Says Social Justice Issues can be Repaired by Legalization

May 8, 2018
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Cynthia Nixon told the NYC cannabis parade that legalization is a form of reparations for minorities harmed by drug war.

Cynthia Nixon Tells NYC Cannabis Parade; Legalization as a Form of Reparations for Those Harmed by Drug War

This year’s Cannabis Parade in New York City, which began modestly back in the 1970s, featured a series of elected officials, a City Councilman, Jumaane Williams, and Democratic candidate for New York Governor, Cynthia Nixon, of “Sex and the City” fame.

Ms. Nixon got Saturday’s crowd even higher than they probably already were when she reiterated her support for legalizing weed and declared that she would prioritize neighborhoods for licenses to sell it.

“If you are black or Latino, you are 10 times more likely to be arrested for cannabis than if you are white. And that’s not right,” she said to cheers.

As one of the four New York governor hopefuls who attended the parade, Cynthia Nixon’s speech stressing social justice as her main impetus for promoting legalization was the most welcome.

“Arresting people–particularly people of color–for cannabis is the crown jewel in the racist war on drugs and we must pluck it down,” she said. “We must expunge people’s records; we must get people out of prison.”

This is an especially crucial issue in New York City where the police recently revealed that black and brown people were nearly 10 times more likely to be arrested for pot possession last year, despite the fact that white people consume the same amount.

People of color made up a staggering 86% of all marijuana arrests in 2017 in New York City.

“Now that cannabis is exploding as an industry, we have to make sure that those communities that have been harmed and devastated by marijuana arrests get the first shot at this industry,” she said in an interview after her speech. “We [must] prioritize them in terms of licenses. It’s a form of reparations.”

As Ms. Nixon headed for the subway, she told the New York Daily News that legalizing marijuana should be a number one priority for the state.

“It’s really important for New York to be a progressive leader again,” she said, calling it a “racial justice issue.”

These two points will surely secure a lot of New Yorkers’ votes for Cynthia Nixon: She supports weed legalization and she takes the subway!

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