Wiese Jessica L, Watson Tara Marie, Owusu-Bempah Akwasi, Hyshka Elaine, Wells Samantha, Robinson Margaret, Elton-Marshall Tara, Rueda Sergio
Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Contemp Drug Probl. 2023 Mar;50(1):25-45. doi: 10.1177/00914509221142156. Epub 2022 Dec 5.
Historically, overpolicing of some racialized and Indigenous groups in Canada has resulted in unequal application of drug laws contributing to disproportionate rates of charges and convictions in these populations. Criminal records severely and negatively impact an individual's life and can perpetuate cycles of poverty and socioeconomic disadvantage. On October 17, 2018, Canada legalized cannabis production, distribution, sale, and possession for non-medical purposes. Advocates of criminal justice reform have raised concerns that Indigenous and racialized people may not equitably benefit from legalization due to unequal police surveillance and drug enforcement. These groups are among priority populations for research on cannabis and mental health, but their views on cannabis regulation have been largely absent from research and policy-making. To address this gap, we asked self-identified members of these communities about their lived experiences and perspectives on cannabis legalization in Canada. Between September 2018 and July 2019, we conducted semistructured interviews and focus groups with 37 individuals in Québec, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. During this phase of early cannabis legalization, participants responded to questions about anticipated public health risks and benefits of legalization, how their jurisdiction is responding to legalization, and what community resources would be needed to address legalization impacts. We conducted a thematic analysis and identified five major themes in the data related to race and early cannabis legalization: overpolicing of racialized communities, severity of penalties in new cannabis legislation, increased police powers, and underrepresentation of racialized groups in the legal cannabis market and in cannabis research. Participants discussed opportunities to support cannabis justice, including establishing priority licenses, issuing pardons or expunging criminal records, and reinvesting cannabis revenue into impacted communities. This work begins to address the paucity of Indigenous and racialized voices in cannabis research and identifies potential solutions to injustices of cannabis prohibition.
从历史上看，加拿大对一些种族化群体和原住民群体的过度监管导致了毒品法律的不平等适用，使得这些人群中被指控和定罪的比例过高。犯罪记录会对个人生活产生严重负面影响，并可能使贫困和社会经济劣势的循环持续下去。2018年10月17日，加拿大将非医疗用途大麻的生产、分销、销售和持有合法化。刑事司法改革的倡导者担心，由于警察监督和毒品执法的不平等，原住民和种族化群体可能无法公平地从合法化中受益。这些群体是大麻与心理健康研究的重点人群之一，但在研究和政策制定中，基本上没有他们对大麻监管的看法。为了填补这一空白，我们询问了这些社区中自我认同的成员，了解他们在加拿大对大麻合法化的生活经历和看法。在2018年9月至2019年7月期间，我们在魁北克省、安大略省、艾伯塔省和不列颠哥伦比亚省对37人进行了半结构化访谈和焦点小组讨论。在大麻合法化的这一早期阶段，参与者回答了有关合法化预期的公共健康风险和益处、其所在司法管辖区对合法化的应对措施，以及应对合法化影响所需的社区资源等问题。我们进行了主题分析，并在与种族和早期大麻合法化相关的数据中确定了五个主要主题：对种族化社区的过度监管、新大麻立法中的刑罚严厉程度、警察权力的增加，以及种族化群体在合法大麻市场和大麻研究中的代表性不足。参与者讨论了支持大麻司法的机会，包括发放优先许可证、赦免或消除犯罪记录，以及将大麻税收重新投入受影响社区。这项工作开始填补大麻研究中原住民和种族化声音的不足，并确定了应对大麻禁令不公正现象的潜在解决方案。
