Want to Legalize Marijuana? Get Moms on Board

Remember a mom called Candace Lightner, who, after her 13-year-old daughter was killed by a drunk driver in 1980, founded an organization, which is is now one of the largest non-profits in the entire country?

Did you know that one of the essential factors in the repeal of Prohibition, back in 1933, was the active support provided by a large group of well-organized mothers? OK, fair enough, they got booze banned in the first place, but they did help legalize it again.

Examples like these, and there are many more, make you realize that the missing ingredient in the marijuana legalization battle has been your mother. But that’s changing.

Get moms on board and success will follow.

Moms are convincing the world around them that weed is far safer than alcohol and is an effective medical remedy for many conditions. They won’t be deterred.

Prior to the passage of California’s Prop. 64, one woman penned a call to action to mothers across that state to use their moral authority “to speak out to end a broken system of marijuana prohibition that has been tearing our families apart for far too many decades.”

“Mothers, please don’t be swayed by the scare tactics of the criminal justice system, which has a financial stake in keeping people behind bars,” wrote Gretchen Burns Bergman in the Huffington Post last fall. “Unfortunately, when in doubt, parents often remain silent, but we can’t afford to accept the status quo any longer. Our children’s futures are at stake.”

As legalization—medical and recreational—recently made significant gains across the country, it has become clear to the frightened and the skeptical that cannabis use does not lead to the degradation of society nor of our young people.

Prison, however, does.

“As a mother whose son spent 11 years of his young life cycling in and out of prison for marijuana possession, I know first-hand the hardships that these punitive prohibitionist policies create for both the individual and their families,” continued Bergman.

Bergman is the executive director and co-founder of A New PATH (Parents for Addiction Treatment & Healing) and organizer of PATH’S Moms United to End the War on Drugs, which is a growing movement to stop violence, mass incarceration and overdose deaths.

According to recent national opinion polls by Gallup and others, the dramatic rise in the public’s support of marijuana law reform is being driven primarily by an increase in support among America’s women.

“My personal belief is that every mom in America should understand the potential positive impact cannabis legalization could have on society overall,” said Pamela Hadfield, co-founder of HelloMD.

As women and as mothers, it is time to pressure our lawmakers to put an end to policies that criminalize a harmless plant, while real crime and government corruption run rampant in our communities and our country.

The role of women in the struggle to end marijuana prohibition is pivotal, essential and increasing.

Homework for this Mother’s Day: Educate all the moms you know about the positive aspects of cannabis legalization. Protect your family by making weed legal.

RELATED: Marijuana Use Growing Among Women
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