Pubdate: Fri, 22 Oct 2010
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Page: AA4
Copyright: 2010 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  http://www.latimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Author: Ann M. Simmons
Cited: Proposition 19 http://yeson19.com/
Bookmark: http://mapinc.org/find?272 (Proposition 19)

Proposition 19

CELEBRITIES LEND SUPPORT TO MEASURE LEGALIZING POT

Opponents of the Nov. 2 Initiative Say They Are Unfazed by the Stars' Actions.

Proposition 19, the California initiative that would legalize 
marijuana, got a boost Thursday from several Hollywood celebrities 
who announced they were throwing their support behind the measure.

Rock singer Melissa Etheridge joined actors Danny Glover and Hal 
Sparks, former LAPD Deputy Chief Steve Downing, former New Mexico 
Gov. Gary Johnson and activist Sarah Lovering at a news conference at 
Cafe Was in Hollywood to announce their support for Proposition 19.

The ballot measure would allow adults 21 and older to grow and 
possess marijuana and would authorize cities and counties to approve 
the cultivation, sale and taxation of pot.

Etheridge said she was not a regular user of cannabis until she was 
diagnosed with breast cancer and had to undergo chemotherapy. She 
said she had the choice of using 10 drugs with various side effects 
or opt for a "natural solution."

Although she has a medicinal license to use marijuana, the singer 
said she would like to see pot become legal because "I don't want to 
look like a criminal to my children anymore. I want them to know this 
is a choice that you make as a responsible adult."

Glover called the law criminalizing marijuana "draconian" and said 
that Latinos and African Americans are the most affected by it 
because these minorities typically end up in jail when caught with 
even the smallest amount of the drug.

Downing and Johnson also described the existing pot law as 
discriminatory. Although research shows the majority of people who 
use marijuana are white, the largest number arrested in connection 
with the drug are "black and brown," Downing said.

He said lifting the prohibition on pot would help quash the black 
market for cannabis and impede the enrichment of drug cartels.

Opponents of Proposition 19 said they were unfazed by the stars' 
support for the ballot measure.

"I don't think it's a surprise that Hollywood celebrities are 
pro-Prop.19 legislation," said Roger Salazar, a spokesman for Public 
Safety First, the main opposition campaign, backed by state law 
enforcement groups and the California Chamber of Commerce. "But 
that's not what it's about. It's about the specifics and the initiatives."

One of those specifics, Salazar said, is that "if you legalize a 
product and make it available, logically you're going to have an 
increase in usage."

Alexandra Datig, an acknowledged former addict of marijuana and other 
drugs, now runs the anti-Proposition 19 group Nip It In The Bud 2010. 
She stood outside Cafe Was, handing out an open letter to the 
entertainment community.

"I ask you to reconsider," the letter reads in part. "Many of you are 
role models to our youth, many of our nation's young talents look up 
to you, try to emulate you and listen to the advice you give.... Few 
things can damage a youthful and hopeful career, such as drug use, 
often starting with marijuana."

The news conference was organized to promote the initiative and draw 
attention to BuddhaFest, which aims to raise awareness about 
marijuana. The festival, with entertainment on 10 stages, will start 
at noon Saturday continue until 2 a.m. Sunday at the Los Angeles 
Center Studios in downtown L.A. 
- ---
MAP posted-by: Richard Lake