An employee holds a jar of marijuana for sale after it became legal in the state to sell recreational marijuana to customers over 21 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Illinois begins legal sale of marijuana on January 1, 2020.
Matthew Hatcher | Reuters
Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and two other Democratic senators said on Monday that they will push to pass comprehensive legislation this year that would end the federal marijuana ban, which has been legalized to some extent by many states.
This reform would also provide so-called restorative justice for people who have been convicted of marijuana-related crimes, the senators said in a joint statement.
“The War on Drugs has been a war against people – especially people of color,” said a statement issued by Schumer, DN.Y., and Sens. Cory Booker from New Jersey and Ron Wyden from Oregon.
“Ending the federal marijuana ban is necessary to fix the mistakes of this failed war and end decades of damage inflicted on communities of color across the country,” they said.
“But that alone is not enough. As states continue to legalize marijuana, we must also enact measures that will raise people who have been unjustly targeted in the War on Drugs. ”
Senators said they would release “a unified discussion project on comprehensive reform” earlier this year, and that passing the legislation will be a priority for the Senate.
The trio also said that in addition to ending the federal marijuana ban and ensuring restorative justice, the legislation would “protect public health and implement responsible taxes and regulations”.
Schumer co-sponsored marijuana decriminalization legislation for several years.
The statement comes as public support for legal marijuana has grown. A Gallup poll in November showed that a record 68 percent of Americans were in favor of marijuana legalization.
All initiatives that involved the decriminalization or legalization of marijuana at the polls in 2020 were approved.
Voters in New Jersey and Arizona opted to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use. Mississippi voted to legalize the medical use of marijuana and South Dakota has legalized the drug for recreational and medical use.
So far, 15 states – along with the District of Columbia – have legalized marijuana for adult recreational use. And 36 states allow medical use of the drug.
Wyden’s home state of Oregon is the first to decriminalize hard drugs.