Conservatively raised Becca Harmon said she would not have believed it if someone told her she would one day be sitting in a public park in Amarillo advocating for the legalization of cannabis. But then she had Jilli.
Diagnosed with intractable epilepsy and severely developmentally delayed, 11-year-old Jilli benefits greatly from a non-psychoactive derivative of cannabis oil, recommended by her physician, Harmon said. But her medicine isn’t legal in Texas. Instead, she has been prescribed a host of other medicines, heavily laden with side effects that her mother said contribute to her developmental delays.
Amarillo Cannabis Culture, a local chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Law, hosted its second annual Learn, Liberate, Legalize celebration on Saturday to raise awareness about the benefits of marijuana. The family-friendly event, held at Sam Houston Park, looked like any other gathering people would see on any weekend in Amarillo – live music, local vendors and food booths a dunk tank, bouncy houses.
Harmon said she and her husband, John, moved to Colorado twice to get their daughter the medicine she needs, but returned because he could not find work. With cannabis oil, Jilli experienced 85 percent seizure reduction, Harmon said. She was making eye contact and attempting to copy noises her parents made.
“She never has done those things before in 10 years,” said Harmon of her daughter, who functions intellectually as a 9-month-old. “Now we’re back here and we can’t give her what she needs.”
Local attorney Ryan Brown, NORML’s public information officer, said cannabis prohibition has been no more effective than alcohol prohibition and that the substance was originally banned for racist reasons.
“We’re just trying to spread awareness of the injustices of cannabis prohibition,” Brown said. “People need cannabis as medicine. People are getting locked up every day, when just a short trip away it is legal. We feel like it should be fully legalized medically and recreationally. Texas is so backward with the research it’s hard to tell who might benefit from THC. They don’t even want to know.”
On the other hand, Brown said Colorado is making money and collecting taxes “hand over fist and they’ve got the research to show that they’re not seeing increases in crime, that their heroin and alcohol problems are decreasing since cannabis has been legalized. Domestic abuse and drug-related crime is down.”
Texas might appear to be making progress, but Brown said it is illusory. The Texas Compassionate Use Act (Senate Bill 339) was signed by Gov. Greg Abbott and became effective June 1, 2015. The bill requires Texas Department of Public Safety to create a secure registry of physicians who treat epilepsy, and of patients who have been diagnosed with intractable epilepsy.
In addition, the bill requires DPS to license at least three dispensing organizations by Sept. 1, 2017. The license will authorize the organizations to cultivate, process and dispense low-THC cannabis to prescribed patients.
Brown said that law caps the dosage at .05 percent THC, which is not realistic for every patient.
Harmon agrees.
“It won’t help everyone because people require different dosages,” Harmon said. “And it requires two doctors to sign for it. Doctors may not be willing to prescribe because the act does nothing to prevent the federal government from descending upon them. In Colorado, cannabis is recommended rather than prescribed, so doctors don’t have to worry about federal consequences.”
The good news, Harmon said, is that John has found work and the family will be moving back to Colorado in the fall, this time permanently.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Local Group Works To Reform Cannabis Laws
Author: Michael Hughes
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