Harborside walks back “not supporting legalization”Posted by Mickey Martin on December 3rd, 2011

A reporter emailed me a statement sent by Steve Deangelo of Harborside that attempt to “clarify” the statement that Harborside “does not support the legalization of cannabis.” The only problem is that the statement raises more questions than it answers….Here is the statement:

“The mission of Harborside Health Center is to advocate for full access to cannabis for purposes of health and wellness. While it is not our mission to advocate the legalization of cannabis for recreational purposes, we do feel criminal penalties for cannabis are unjust and should be repealed.” -Steve Deangelo

The reason it raises question is because just over a year ago, it WAS Harborside’s mission to support legalization, as they tried to use their support to further their impact in the press when it was chic to support legalization for recreational use. Here is a piece from the Sac Bee’s Peter Hecht where Steve is claiming that he will be serving ANY qualified person who wants to buy cannabis under Prop. 19. To mee that sounds like a full on “support for legalization” and it most definitely sounded like part of their mission. Check it out:

From the Sacramento Bee:

Proposition 19 has been funded largely by Oakland marijuana entrepreneur Richard Lee, operator of the city’s Coffee Shop Blue Sky dispensary and a marijuana trade school, Oaksterdam University. It also has gotten financial support from a major Bay Area dispensary, Berkeley Patient’s Group Inc., and political backing from Steve DeAngelo, executive director of Harborside Health Center, an Oakland outlet billed as the largest dispensary in the world. DeAngelo, who initially thought this was the wrong year to put the measure on the ballot, now strongly advocates its passage. “If it wins, you’re going to see a major shift in the political dynamic for cannabis,” DeAngelo said. “And I think politicians who thought there was a downside to supporting cannabis will receive a wake-up call.”

Harborside, a nonprofit network that handles $26 million in marijuana transactions annually, may be well-equipped to convert into a retail operation that serves both medical and recreational users. “I don’t think there is any reason we wouldn’t be able to serve any qualified person who wants to purchase cannabis providing the city of Oakland licenses us to do so,” DeAngelo said.

So just a little over a year ago Steve and the Harborside crew “strongly advocated” for legalization for recreational users, even going as far as talking about “serving any person,” but now they “do not support legalization?” but they do “feel criminal penalties should be repealed.” These backwards and backpedalled statements are cowardice political calculations reminiscent of Mitt Romney’s “tell ‘em anything to get elected” strategies. No one is falling for it.

It is not that I truly think Harborside does not support legalization. Steve Deangelo has been in the cannabis distribution game for a long time and has provided cannabis to non-medical users for decades before he ever opened H-side. I think he is making these statements to protect himself from the attacks he is experiencing from the Feds and likely the producers of his fancy show. The problem is that he brought the heat on himself, and should have the courage to man up and face his convictions and not cower in fear to the aggressors with some wishy-washy bullshit statements.

The right answer is, “We feel legalizing cannabis for adult use would benefit our society by reducing harm and creating greater harmony in our communities. The drug war is a failure and it is ruining our  society. Cannabis is safe, enjoyable, and helpful and should be made available to responsible adults for medicine or to enjoy.”

Anything less is absolute balderdash. To try and tiptoe around that “do not support legalization” statement if you want. The fact is that it is TREASON to the cannabis community. You went on the most conservative show on TV, an audience we greatly need to reach with our message, and you sold us down the river. That audience heard “even those guys do not support legalization…why should I?” And that is sad and problematic.

I would hope that Harborside would grow a sack of nuts and not just babble on about “Flipping the switch” and “Out of the shadows” when it was politically and socially convenient. Make a strong statement that they SUPPORT ENDING CANNABIS PROHIBITION period, and not just “feel that laws should be repealed.” Feeling something and supporting it are two different things completely, and the internet easily shows plenty of statements where they do indeed SUPPORT AND ADVOCATE for legalization, INCLUDING HIS CURRENT ENDORSEMENT OF REGULATE MARIJUANA LIKE WINE! Check it out..this is just from August of this year…JUST OVER 3 MONTHS AGO!

Notice in the video Steve says that “The most important thing to me is to get our people out of prison.” NEWSFLASH…the best way to do that IS TO SUPPORT LEGALIZATION….” Duh.

I just do not get the evolving postion into a more prohibitive one. If you have fought your entire life to free the cannabis plant, why walk that shit back now?….Do not bother answering that because it is clear your statements are more mired in what you believe others want to hear than in your real convictions and understanding…which is sad.