STATEMENT BY COUNCIL MEMBER WILLIAMS
"I want to commend the Mayor for today announcing that he will instruct the NYPD not to arrest New Yorkers for public marijuana usage, but rather to issue them a summons. This is one step in a larger process of correcting the many years of injustice that have led to hundreds of thousands of arrests in this city, disproportionately targeting communities and individuals of more color. Such significant, long overdue change will require a core, sustained commitment from the Mayor, the Council, the NYPD, District Attorneys, and many other agencies and offices. It will also require a state government that is willing to ultimately act for the public good by legalizing marijuana and expunging the records of those whose lives have been ruined by such arrests and charges."
"It is important to remember, as the politics and policy of marijuana undergo rapid, public change, that this is not simply the result of a progressive moment, but rather a movement. Bold advocates and elected officials have pushed for the decriminalizing and ultimately the legalization of marijuana for many years, and the progress being made in recent days and weeks comes as a result of their dedication and conviction. This movement will continue to push to ensure that political promises become active progressive policies regardless of shifting political winds. The hysteria and misinformation surrounding marijuana prohibition has clouded the issue of injustice for far too long, and it's time to clear the air and the records of those who have been targeted by illogical policies for years.
"Should marijuana legalization becomes an eventual reality, it is essentially that the discriminatory actions surrounding its prohibition are not repeated. The industry should be open to all individuals and all communities, including those previously targeted for arrest under the illogical and inconsistent policies that we are working to correct."
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