Pubdate: Fri, 07 Oct 2016
Source: Peterborough Examiner, The (CN ON)
Copyright: 2016 Peterborough Examiner
Contact: http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/letters
Website: http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2616
Author: Joelle Kovach
Page: A2

POLICE RAIDS AT POT STORE PROTESTED

Marijuana advocates say marijuana stores are here to stay and urge
city to draft regulations like Vancouver has

A group of marijuana advocates say council should accept that pot
stores are here to stay and develop some city regulations to deal with
them.

They said so at a rally outside City Hall on Thursday. It started with
about six people at 4 p.m., with the crowd growing steadily until the
rally ended at 6 p.m.

Organizers Wayne Matheson and Eamon Cyr said their advocacy group is
called Cannabis Culture Fighting Unjust Laws.

They said the group is unaffiliated with the Cannabis Culture store on
George St. that was raided twice by police and closed in September.

Nonetheless, the group isn't happy with the police raids - and they'd
like all of Peterborough to know it.

"I figure it's time for people to stand up," Cyr said.

Matheson has organized marijuana rallies such as 420 Day for the last
six years, in Peterborough. He says he's prepared to ask city council
to regulate marijuana dispensaries, similarly to the way it's been
done in Vancouver.

City policies in Vancouver say pot stores can't be located within 300
metres of a school, park or subdivision. Those rules could apply in
Peterborough too, Matheson said.

Then pot stores could operate peacefully, he said, and people would
have an alternative to buying marijuana in a dark back alley or a
dealer's basement.

"Even though marijuana is still illegal, this is a safety issue,"
Matheson said. "We're going at it from a public safety
perspective."

Joanne Bull was at the rally, waving a huge marijuana flag and
vaping.

She said she uses marijuana to ease severe pain in her knees and
joints. Smoking pot allows her to walk, she said.

Bull says she only got to buy once from Cannabis Culture, before it
closed, and the marijuana was good.

"It's nothing like what I got on the street," she said, adding that
she had to smoke far less in order to get the desired pain relief.

Bull doesn't have a prescription for marijuana; she says her doctor
won't give her one.

Her only other choice is to take painkillers, but she doesn't like
taking pills.

"Why would I be putting that damaging medication into me?" she
said.

"I'm an adult. Why should I not be able to say, 'This works for me?'
Why should I be worried about getting busted?"
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MAP posted-by: Matt