Marijuana petition in Pryor

Pryor Times — Prohibition does not work.

This is the mantra of the Oklahoma Coalition Against Prohibition, which is circulating a petition to decriminalize medical marijuana.

The organization assisted another advocacy group who set up a petition table in Pryor last weekend.

“Our mission is to seek the improvement of quality of life of Oklahomans by seeking to end prohibition,” the OKCAP website says. “In Oklahoma cannabis prohibition has adversely impacted the quality of lives of Oklahomans; their freedom, the state’s agriculture, economic growth, family structure, employment opportunities, healthcare and generally many other aspects of normal life for a human being.”

The group first set up in Pryor at Rocklahoma, where 1,000 signatures were collected. The group does not have the total number collected from the stop outside Casey’s Vapors on Highway 69 in Pryor, but said they did very well there.

Statewide the group has collected about 100,000 signatures, according to OKCAP volunteer Shawn, with another 10,000-20,000 signatures that have been collected but have yet to be turned in.

“When someone walks up to our table, we ask them if they are a registered voter,” said Katherine, the OKCAP leader for Seminole County. “If they are not we provide voter registration forms for them to fill out, which we then take straight to the election board to turn in. Then we ask them if they know anything about medical marijuana, if they have done research and read case studies. Most people have heard about it because it’s a pretty hot button issue right now.

Shawn said the goal is to make an allowance in the state of Oklahoma for medicinal marijuana, with an accompanying identification card. Anyone arrested in possession of marijuana without a valid medical marijuana card would receive a ticket not to exceed $400.

“It’s not logical for this to carry jail time. We’d like to decriminalize it so it carries fines only,” said Shawn.

Shawn said according to OKCAP research, 70-80 percent of Oklahomans are in favor of the decriminalization of medical marijuana, but most are afraid to sign the petition.

“People want it but they are too afraid to ask for it. In small towns, fear of retaliation or fear of police harassment keep people from signing,” Shawn said. “But it just makes sense to decriminalize it, it will help a lot of people.”

The petition is still available to sign at Casey’s Vapors, Shawn said.

He said OKCAP is seeking permission to set up a petition table outside Walmart this weekend. After that, they hope to go to Tahlequah, then Locust Grove.

The last stop in Tahlequah gathered 100 signatures, while the OKCAP table at Tulsa’s Center of the Universe Festival gathered approximately 2,000. The lobbyists need a total of 155,216 valid petition signatures to get the measure on a ballot.

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Marijuana petition in Pryor