White Kansas lawmaker says blacks predisposed to drugs
Remarks came during discussion of legalizing pot
TOPEKA, Kan. — A white Kansas state lawmaker arguing against the legalization of marijuana suggested that it and other drugs were originally outlawed in part because blacks were predisposed to abusing drugs because of their “character makeup — their genetics and that.”
State Rep. Steve Alford, a 75-year-old Republican from Ulysses in the state’s southwestern corner, apologized Monday for remarks he made Saturday during a public meeting at a hospital in Garden City. One NAACP leader called Alford “an idiot” over the remarks.
At the meeting, Alford referenced a time in the 1930s when marijuana was prohibited. The Garden City Telegram first reported on the statement Monday and posted a video of it to YouTube.
“What was the reason they did that?” he asked a crowd of about 60 people, none of whom was black. “One of the reasons why — I hate to say it — is the AfricanAmericans, they were basically users and they responded the worst off to those drugs. It’s because of their character makeup — their genetics and that. And so basically what we’re trying to do, is we’re trying to do a complete reverse of the people not remembering what’s happened in the past.”
Kansas is one of the few remaining states that haven’t legalized some form of medical marijuana, including low-THC marijuana derivatives that can’t get a user high. But the legalization question has been percolating in Kansas in recent years.
In a written apology he released Monday, Alford said he views substance abuse as a “blight” and that he thinks legalizing marijuana would open the door to harder drugs.
“As an aside, I also remarked that one of the original reasons behind the criminalization of the drug in the 1930s was its negative effects on society and more specifically the damaging consequences on the African-American community,” Alford’s statement said. “I was wrong, I regret my comments, and I sincerely apologize to anyone whom I have hurt.”
Before Alford issued his apology, Darrell Pope, the president of the NAACP’s chapter in Hutchinson, said: “He is an idiot, and that shows how oblivious Kansans are to selecting representatives to put someone like that in there to represent them.”
Alford issued his apology after meeting with the Republican-controlled state House’s top GOP leaders, Speaker Ron Ryckman Jr. and Majority Leader Don Hineman. They said they were “completely taken aback” and disappointed by Alford’s remarks.