Last Thursday President Biden announced a pardon for all previous federal offences of simple cannabis possession.
Federal offences = Apply to everyone in the country
State offences = Apply to only people in certain states
The president says that the criminalisation of cannabis has “imposed needless barriers” on people of colour and has “upended too many lives".
“We class cannabis at the same level as heroin - and more serious than fentanyl. It makes no sense.”
Biden has called for governors to follow a similar approach as well as asking the justice department and attorney general to review the process of how cannabis is scheduled under federal law.
It’s thought that this pardon could benefit around 6,500 people who have been incarcerated for simple possession between 1991 and 2022, the hill reports. From this pardon we should start to see the number of people able to gain employment, housing and education rise.
At this time, it’s unclear which federal charges will meet the new laws definition of “simple possession”. Biden announced he has no current plans of full legalisation.
Biden’s announcement is a complete shift from his views against cannabis back in 2010 where he said during an interview, “legalising it would be a mistake” and “he still believes it's a gateway drug”.
However, he has honoured his promise to decriminalise cannabis which was part of his election campaign back in 2020.
For the USA, this was a big day in revolutionary social change that has been called for by its citziens for many years.
37 states have already legalised medical marijuana possession (over 50% of the country) and 19 have legalised recreational cannabis use for 21+.
This pardon comes a month before November’s mid-term elections which determine the power balance in Washington for the last two years of Bidens term.
Biden says it hass imposed needless barriers’ on people of color
late Thursday afternoon this was announced
the pardon could benefit about 6,500 people, the Hill reports
he called for governors to take the same approach and for the justice department to review how cannabis is classified under federal law
As part of Joe Bidens campaign he promised to help decriminalise cannabis
37 states have legalised medical cannabis, 19 for recreational over 21.
The house passed for cannabis legalisation in April 2022 but the bill faces conflict within the senate.
The pardons will not apply to people convicted of selling or distributing
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