California moms voice support for marijuana legalization proposition

The Rev. Canon Mary Moreno Richardson of St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral also participated in the call. “A lot of people look at this and say, this is a stoner law,” Richardson said. “As people of faith we are called to be instruments of faith. We are also called to be just, wise, and kind.”

Several other religious organizations in California have signaled their support for Prop 19, including the California Council of Churches, the Interfaith Drug Policy Alliance, and Clergy Against Prohibition.

The only Hispanic mother on the call, Richardson said that she had seen more families in the Latin American community destroyed by alcohol than by weed. Richardson recalled administering domestic abuse counseling to a group of Latino men, and asking if any of them had been under the influence of marijuana when they attacked their partners. “They looked at me like I was crazy,” Richardson told reporters. “People don’t fight when they’re stoned. When I asked if alcohol was involved, 14 out of 15 hands would go up.”

Every mother on the call rebutted the claim that marijuana is a gateway drug to dangerous substances, but none more passionately than Richardson. “I believe it’s the gateway drug to the criminal justice system,” she said. “[Prop. 19] may be a radical law to a lot of people, but I believe in radical justice right now, because I believe in a radical God.”