Caribbean Life, M 12 arch 29–April 4, 2019 BQ
OP-EDS
Yes, to marijuana justice
New York Times expose on inequality
between Black and white boys,
highlighting that Black boys raised
in America, even in the wealthiest
families (Canarsie a working-class
neighborhood by no means wealthy)
and living in some of the most wellto
do neighborhoods, still earn less
in adulthood than white boys with
similar backgrounds, according to a
sweeping new study that traced the
lives of millions of children. White
boys who grow up rich are likely to
remain that way. Black boys raised
at the top, however, are more likely
to become poor than to stay wealthy
in their own adult households.” This
data can be directly correlated to a
preponderance of police interaction
of Black male bodies, to no fault
of their own. A neighborhood with
a lower median income Sheepshead
Bay, in which state Senator Persaud
also represents along with Canarsie
with a median income of $52,673 is
second among the 15 predominantly
white neighborhoods in NYC where
most marijuana possession arrests
are of Blacks and Latinos when they
are only 12 percent of the population.
Again, regardless of the neighborhood
in the 19 senatorial district, if
you are a young Black or Latino male
your life is most likely to be interrupted
for cannabis prosecution.
Marijuana policy over the last 40
years in Black communities across
New York city like Canarsie and Flatlands
has been a policy of extraction.
Tearing apart families as cannabis
possession is the fourth most
likely offense to cause deportation
in this largely Caribbean -immigrant
neighborhood. It is imperative that
both Assemblymember Williams and
Senator Persaud get on the right
side of history concerning cannabis
and have actual conversations and
forums within their own neighborhoods
with constituent voices leading
the way, not outdated and non-empirically
backed rhetoric from elected
officials.
The only statement where Assemblymember
Williams was correct in
her press conference is when she said
that “it has ruined lives and is a gateway
drug,” indeed it has ruined lives,
it has ruined the lives of hundreds of
Black boys, 14-19-year-old, and Black
men, 20 to 24-year-old, who end up
missing, unaccounted for and disenfranchised
every year within her
district because even the smell of
cannabis has given law enforcement
cart blanche over their bodies. Therein
lies the gateway to a false sense
of danger and criminality. A son of
Flatlands and CB18, newly elected
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams
has championed a fair and equitable
pathway to cannabis legalization, as
part of the Progressive Caucus in the
New York City council. Additionally,
there is a bill is in the state assembly
(Marijuana Regulation and Taxation
AC5-A.3506-C) with the sponsorship
of many of AM Williams colleagues
included but not limited to
Peoples-Stokes, Gottfried, Lupardo,
Sepulveda, Weprin, Hunter, Hyndman,
Pichardo, Blake, Rosenthal L,
Jaffee, Dinowitz, Jean-Pierre, Abinanti,
Richardson, Hevesi, Walker, Jenne,
Vanel, Pellegrino, Niou, Wright,
Bichotte, Cahill, Lifton, Epstein,
Mosley, Seawright, Simon, Skartados,
Steck, Taylor.
When addressing issues that are
germane to outgroup males (Black
and Brown boys and men) we must
not begin from a place of fear-mongering
and pathology, no other group
requires such distinction. This only
aids in the outdated and draconian
perspectives of persons that are vital
for neighborhood stability. When
addressing legalization in New York
state, we need to begin from a place
of clearing prior criminal records,
addressing the harm done to housing,
immigration and child welfare, create
an equitable and sustainable industry,
and to reinvest revenues to communities
that were most harmed, like
Canarsie. Yes, to marijuana justice.
This op-ed piece is an excerpt from
a larger piece Keeping Black Markets
Black: A Stratification Economic,
Public Health, and Reparative Justice
Model for Cannabis Equity in the City
of New York.
Floyd Jarvis is a Bard Prison Initiative
Public Health Fellow, executive
director of Canarsie Neighborhood
Alliance, graduate student at The
New School in Public and Urban Policy,
and member of the Start Smart
New York campaign.
Continued from Page 10
The price of progress
lanes on the Long Island Expressway,
light rail service through underserved
areas and even the potential
extension of subway lines east of
Flushing and Jamaica.
If congestion pricing is going to
work for New York City, then the city
and state must keep their promise,
and it must be an unshakable, unconditional
pact: For this “tax” on drivers,
the city must finally provide all
New Yorkers with a modern, efficient
public transportation system.
Continued from Page 10