Students Rally In Springfield Against Legalizing Recreational Pot

SPRINGFIELD, IL — A crowd of Illinois high school students, lawmakers and law enforcement groups came together Wednesday in Springfield at the Capitol rotunda to rally against the legalization of recreational marijuana, according to The Chicago Tribune. Among the nearly 90 students were those from Mundelein High School, Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire and Kankakee High School, Jamie Epstein, adult co-sponsor of Stevenson’s Catalyst Club, told the Tribune.

A group of nearly three dozen lawmakers, led by Democratic state Rep. Marty Moylan (Des Plaines) and House Republican leader Jim Durkin (Western Springs), is sponsoring a resolution to delay moves that would permit the sale and taxation of marijuana. However, Democratic state Sen. Heather Steans and Democratic Rep. Kelly Cassidy, both advocates for the legalization bill they introduced in January, claim prohibition won't work, and the plant isn't as addictive and can't kill users like prescription opioids and other substances, the Tribune reported.

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Among others who spoke out were The Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police, who the Tribune said cited data from Colorado showing more traffic accidents, deaths and hospitalizations involving people with signs of marijuana use in their bodies, and Robert Moore, a spokesman for the Illinois branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, who shared his prediction that blacks will be victimized through several routes if recreational marijuana is legalized.

Patch previously reported Pritzker's campaign promised "bring the era of mass incarcerations for minor drug offenses to an end," and focus on reinvesting in communities hardest hit by drug war policies and "include black and brown entrepreneurs in the planning and licensing of new marijuana dispensaries."

Pritzker has claimed legalizing pot could create between $350 million and $700 million in annual tax revenue.