Long Beach Medical Marijuana Expo and Film Festival Shows Pros, Cons of Prop 19

Dennis Peron (far left) and Bill Britt at the Long Beach Medical Marijuana Expo

LONG BEACH, CA — The Long Beach Gay and Lesbian Community Center played host to the first Medical Marijuana Film Festival and Expo, with the help of  long time activist Richard Eastman.  There were pro and con points to make regarding Prop 19, and Dennis Peron even made his way down to pay a visit.

For those that don’t know Dennis Peron, he is very much against Prop 19 and helped write Prop 215 so people were all ears when it came to hearing the opposition come from the mouth of Mr. Medical Marijuana himself.  One argument was highlighted in a film showcased at the Film Festival and is called “The Ten Percent”.

Hearing about the corporate takeover of the cannabis seeds as they modify the genetics in order to get control over an every-growing population of people: the marijuana user.  Getting our marijuana supply down to ten percent of what it currently is may be to short term goal, but with genetic modification their long term goal is the dollar sign behind cannabis therapeutics.

There were information booths for Prop 19, voter registration booths, and event medical marijuana collectives were on hand to help educate the public on the many approaches to cannabis based medicine.

Kandice Hawes, President of the Orange County chapter of  NORML, supports Prop 19 and thinks it is the most important issue on the ballot (along with defeating Steve Cooly for California’s Attorney General).

OC NORML President Kandice Hawes, posing for OC Weekly for their issue featuring legalization advocates and medical marijuana experts. Chad McKeen from OtherSide Farms and Judge Jim Gray were also featured.

“This will keep people out of jail and save money for our state.  And people in the medical marijuana community are starting to come around and support Prop 19… people will want to have more than one ounce so the medical marijuana community will survive.  It’s important for everyone to be open minded and vote Yes on 19.”

For Long Beach, which has successfully begun to implement a zoning ordinance that allows for medical marijuana collectives to operate, the timing of the Expo couldn’t have been any more poignant; Prop 19 has the attention of the world right now, and voter turnout will only increase with what one Long Beach resident and marijuana advocate calls a “pot button issue”.

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