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Breaking Barriers
New book looks at
100 years o f black
athletes in Oregon
Annual event just
around the com er
See story, page 2
See story, page 5
(Jn rilauh Observer
kCityo/Roses’
Number 29
Wednesday • July22,2014
saw him,on television an^a'sked'him to taire a 'd m g t ë ^ I t X S d T d to s th ls lo b " I W
A
M
D onovan M. S mith
T he P ortland O bserver
by
Marijuana is burning a path to legalization across the
nation; Colorado has approved legal sales, so has our
neighbor state Washington, and last week, the District of
Columbia became the latest jurisdiction to decriminalize
possession o f marijuana. Ending prohibitions against the
years
- •
. Diversity
—
Committed to Cultural
'’'community service
bUt unfoltunate^ o r hlm’ Ms employer, a staffing agency i,
in Spokane,
Falling Taboo
As ‘pot shops’ open
nearby, what does it
mean for Oregon?
Established in 1970
drug has taken varied degrees in each place, and Oregon
could soon be next for recreational sales. How close are we?
Do Oregonians even want legal marijuana?
Washingtonians certainly do. Just a 15 minute drive from
Portland, entrepreneurs started opening up fully legal ‘pot
shops’ in Vancouver, earlier this month. Though Washing­
tonians passed Initiative 502 in 2012, it took a spell for the
state government to adjust to and implement the law.
The new rules in the state go like this: Purchasers must be
aged 21 and older; they can have up to an ounce o f marijuana
(28 grams); up to 16 ounces o f marijuana-infused product; or
up to 72 ounces of marijuana-in fused liquid product. Exceed­
ing these limits would be a misdemeanor, while possessing
40 grams or more would rise to a felony.
furtherm ore, it remains unlawful to ingest marijuana in
public or in a vehicle in Washington. The confines o f private
property are the only authorized places where consumption
o f the drug in is legal. State employees also remain under a
federal mandate preventing them from using marijuana. Or­
egonians, as long as they are within W ashington’s borders
are subject to that state’s law as long as they are visiting the
state; that includes the purchase and consumption o f mari­
juana products.
Demand has been so high (no pun intended) that most o f
the first recreational pot retailers in the state ran out o f
product shortly after opening their doors. Washington busi­
ness licenses for the new pot shops were determined through
a state lottery o f sorts. The city o f Vancouver is currently
only allowing for 6 outlets to operate there and all must be
closed by 11 p.m.
Oregon State Police say despite the shifts in marijuana law
in Washington, they will not be doing anything differently
to crackdown on people re-entering Oregon from Washing­
ton who may have purchased or consumed marijuana during
their stay across the border. However, like in Washington,
continued
on page 4