Measure Z is a step in the right direction

Many thanks to Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) for the following
splendid op-ed endorsing the Oakland Cannabis Initiative, Measure Z.
This is the first time since the 1980s that a Congress member has
spoken up in support of full-fledged marijuana reform. Thanks too
to our campaign consultants for making this endorsement possible.
D. Gieringer, Measure Z Board of Directors

http://www.oaklandtribune.com/Stories/0,1413,82%257E1761%257E2499767,00.html
Oakland Tribune, Oct 29, 2004

Measure Z is a step in the right direction

THE federal government's war on drugs has failed. This year, Oakland
voters have a chance to support an alternative by passing Measure Z.

The drug war has destroyed lives, increased violence and wasted
billions of dollars. Perhaps its most egregious element has been the
criminalization of marijuana as a "schedule one" drug, requiring it
to be treated like cocaine and heroin.

In 2003 the FBI reported an all-time high of more than 755,000
marijuana arrests, far more than the number of arrests for all
violent crimes combined. The result of this approach has been the
imprisonment of thousands of nonviolent offenders, some for life
terms. A disproportionate number of those arrested and convicted are
people of color. This is a crime creation program.

At the state level, we have passed policies to ameliorate the
federal drug war, including Proposition 215 in 1996, to allow medical
marijuana, and Proposition 36 in 2000, to direct drug offenders to
treatment rather than incarceration. Nevertheless, each year
California still spends $150 million to arrest, prosecute and
imprison marijuana offenders.

The drug war has completely failed to control drug use. Since former
President Richard Nixon began the drug war in the 1970s, drug use has
continued, but imprisonment has soared. Studies have shown that
education and treatment are far more effective in reducing drug use
than interdiction. Those are the solutions we need to support.

Unfortunately, we have an administration in Washington that thinks
wars are solutions, even in the face of evidence to the contrary. The
administration of President George W. Bush is continuing and
expanding an expensive and wasteful war that threatens civil
liberties and wastes billions of dollars.

Requiring our law enforcement to fight a "war" on drugs drains
resources and focus away from violent crime. Oakland police make
about 1,000 marijuana arrests every year. Meanwhile, no arrests were
made for half of the murders last year. Most homicides go unsolved.

Measure Z will make marijuana the lowest priority for Oakland
police. It will allow more police time and resources to address
violent crime and reduce Oakland's murder rate. And it will put the
city on record as supporting reform at the state and federal level.

Some people have asked, why Oakland? The answer is simple. Oakland
has a population that has witnessed first-hand the harmful effects of
the drug war. It has a serious crime problem that demands the
undiluted focus of our law enforcement. It's a compassionate city
that has strongly supported the rights of patients to have access to
medical marijuana. And here in the Bay Area, voters have a
distinguished history of leading the nation in progressive reforms.

Changing entrenched federal policy, no matter how wrong-headed, can
be like turning around a battleship. But I believe we are beginning
to see progress. Twenty-seven states have recognized medical
marijuana, and eight of those have followed California's lead and
legalized it.

Last year, an initiative similar to Measure Z to make marijuana a
low police priority passed in Seattle. That city is already reporting
positive impacts, including a big reduction in pot prosecutions since
the measure was enacted.

We deserve policies here in Oakland that reflect the values of our
citizens, not those of Attorney General John Ashcroft. Measure Z is a
good step in that direction. Vote yes.

Barbara Lee is a member of the U.S. House of Representatives who
represents Oakland