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Old September 3rd, 2020 #63
alex revision
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Cannabis referendum: Would legalisation change the 'race-based' targeting of Māori?

Sep 04 2020

A clergyman, a disability and human rights lawyer, a drug dealer and a doctor all have personal stories about cannabis. They agree too many Māori have been penalised for the drug but are divided about whether recreational use should be legalised. Carmen Parahi reports.

Human rights lawyer Dr Huhana Hickey claims she knows of lawyers, judges and police officers who all use cannabis. But she won’t name them. Instead, Hickey uses their consumption of cannabis as an example of the racism involved in current drug laws. She’ll be voting yes in the cannabis legalisation and control referendum on October 17.

Criminalisation a ‘racist policy’

“I can tell you it’s not like they’re innocent,” says Hickey. She calls the criminalisation of the drug, “a race-based hate for cannabis”.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/30...geting-of-mori