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US: Marijuana supporters rally for legalization Kim Skornogoski Great Falls Tribune Sunday 02 May 2010 Beck, 17, was among about 40 young people who stood along 1st Avenue North in Gibson Park on Saturday afternoon to urge people to support legalizing marijuana. "I'm not trying to say everyone should smoke marijuana," he said. "But the people that do shouldn't be filling up prisons. That's a waste." People held signs at the rally reading "Don't panic, it's organic" and "I'm a patient not a criminal," others sang songs and passed around a bucket collecting donations for the cause. Some passersby honked in approval. Brad Anderson, who saw the signs as he rode by on his bicycle, stopped to tell the protesters that a sign saying marijuana hasn't killed anyone was misleading. "It's a lot more dangerous than a cigarette," Anderson said. "If you're going to legalize marijuana — why not legalize cocaine? Why not heroin? Where do you stop?" The Great Falls rally was part of a national effort to legalize marijuana. Similar events also were held Saturday in Bozeman and Missoula. Some people at the rally weren't there to support legalizing what the federal government considers a Schedule 1 narcotic — on par with heroin and PCP — so much as to preserve Montanans' rights to continue to use medical cannabis. Montana is one of 14 states that allow people to use marijuana as medicine after 62 percent of voters approved such a measure in November 2004. City governments, including the Great Falls City Commission, are considering various zoning regulations to control where licensed providers can sell the drug. Great Falls event organizer Becky Clark-Darko, 26, believes Montana's law should be changed so that providers must be certified. Still, she hopes to see medical marijuana allowed nationally so her husband Sean doesn't have to worry that federal agents will charge him with a crime for using cannabis to treat complications from severe diabetes. "I'm not necessarily for legalizing marijuana for everyone," she said. "But I have seen what a difference it's made in my husband's life. If people could see who it helps, they would understand. It's called medicine for a reason." The American Red Cross Behind the line of teens and 20-somethings, a woman sat in a wheelchair Saturday, her two tiny Chihuahuas in her lap, a jug of water at her side and a scarf covering her head. The woman, who didn't give her name, said the last time she protested any cause it was the Vietnam war. For the last six weeks, she has undergone treatment for cancer. At times, even a sip of water made her violently vomit. She tried pills at first, but none worked as well as marijuana, which she uses as often as she can afford it. "I've already got so many chemicals in my body — it doesn't make sense to put in more," she said. While the woman said there should be some restrictions on marijuana, she fears, because of changes being considered by state and city officials, it could become more difficult and more expensive for people like her to get it. "I'm not necessarily for legalizing marijuana for everyone," she said. "But I have seen what a difference it's made in my husband's life. If people could see who it helps, they would understand. It's called medicine for a reason." The American Red Cross Behind the line of teens and 20-somethings, a woman sat in a wheelchair Saturday, her two tiny Chihuahuas in her lap, a jug of water at her side and a scarf covering her head. The woman, who didn't give her name, said the last time she protested any cause it was the Vietnam war. For the last six weeks, she has undergone treatment for cancer. At times, even a sip of water made her violently vomit. She tried pills at first, but none worked as well as marijuana, which she uses as often as she can afford it. "I've already got so many chemicals in my body — it doesn't make sense to put in more," she said. While the woman said there should be some restrictions on marijuana, she fears, because of changes being considered by state and city officials, it could become more difficult and more expensive for people like her to get it.
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