With 21 days until Nov. 2, an increasing number of student organizations are attempting to make their mark on the 2010 midterm elections.
Tonight’s “Legalize It?” debate on the legalization of marijuana is one such attempt to bring the election closer to campus; the event will take place from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Center.
Sponsored by the Roosevelt Institute, a non-partisan student-run public policy think tank, “Legalize It?” will be a debate between Allison Margolin, a Proposition 19 advocate and criminal attorney, and Joel Hay, a professor at the USC School of Pharmacology.
The debate will focus on educating potential voters about both sides of the marijuana issue. It is also meant to foster an excitement that is present during presidential elections but does not necessarily exist during midterm elections, said Joelle Gamble, co-president of the UCLA chapter of the Roosevelt Institute and a third-year international development studies student.
If passed, Proposition 19 would legalize marijuana for recreational use, while also allowing the government to impose taxes and fees and authorize penalties on use of the substance.
Margolin’s argument for the proposition stems from the continued criminalization of marijuana abusers. Arresting marijuana users requires unneeded police resources, she said.
She added that the government imposes too much control over the ways in which citizens alter their own consciousness.
On the other side of the issue is Hay, who said legalizing marijuana will lead to a marked increase in the number of drug-induced fatalities.
He added that the bill is structured poorly and will not have the effect most proponents assume it will. Many voters assume legalization of marijuana will put a dent in drug trafficking, but Hay said because most marijuana users are underage, there will still be a market for illegal supplies of the drug.
Hay said he also plans to talk about how, if passed, Proposition 19 will directly contradict federal law, which continues to oppose the use of all marijuana.