Just say no
Charlottetown man leading a petition against the legalization of marijuana.
Mitch Reid of Charlottetown is saying no to legalizing marijuana as he feels this would lead more people down the path of drug use.
“I’m concerned about the step after smoking weed. For some people, they may go down that path and may not get out of it.”
Reid has seen his fair share of Islanders struggling with addiction.
Three years ago, he started a group through the Christian Reformed Church called Take the First Step to help spread the message of hope through Christ to those suffering from addiction and their families.
“When the Liberal government said they are going to legalize marijuana, it caused a red flag for me,” said Reid. “All the families that I’ve talked to and all the addicts that I’ve talked to, and try to help, said the gateway drug was marijuana.”
Reid also expresses his concerns for it falling into the hands of young people as he feels it will be more readily accessible to them.
Reid wrote to The Guardian in a letter to the editor Jan. 19 calling for Islanders to sign the petition and has since received a lot of online backlash over his concerns of legalizing marijuana.
“I know it’s quite the topic and I’ve been verbally abused a number of times over it, but there is a lot of support, too,” said Reid. “They don’t see the picture that I see. The picture I see is the addicts that have suffered through this all. That is who we are trying to help. “
Reid will be foot-soldiering in Charlottetown today from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Kent Street and University Avenue.
He will be sharing information to people regarding the negatives of legalizing marijuana and asking for signatures.
“Everybody has their opinions about it,” said Reid. “You can talk to 10 people and there would be 10 different answers about the topic, but I would love to share about what I think about it all.”
Reid has several hundred signatures on his petition so far and hopes to get over a thousand before bringing it forward to Charlottetown MP Sean Casey. To sign Reid’s online petition, visit change.org.