Hub City NORML, the local chapter of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, held a community park clean-up and cookout at McAllister Park Wednesday evening to help celebrate the unofficial marijuana holiday and educate others on marijuana law reform.
“It’s not some place to come and find your next marijuana connection, that’s not what we’re about,” Larry Walden, executive director of Hub City NORML said.
The local group is part of a national movement that works to shift public opinion towards reforming marijuana laws, something that’s part of the national conversation.
In a CBS News poll released Wednesday morning, 56% of Americans said marijuana use should be legal, 52% consider it safer than alcohol and 90% think doctors should be allowed to prescribe it medicinally.
“You have to look at those numbers and see what actually happens, I don’t think those numbers are reflective of Lubbock,” State Representative John Frullo said.
Rep. Frullo said while there is discussion in state government, it may be a while before Texas follows Colorado’s lead.
“With the composition of the legislature, I don’t see that changing any time soon,” Frullo said.
But there has been progress, last legislative session Governor Greg Abbott made cannabis oils legal to patients suffering from severe forms of epilepsy. This past fall, Harris County lessened the punishment for low-level offenders.