White lawmaker says blacks ‘responded worst’ to drugs

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 were black. “One of the reasons why — I hate to say it — is the African-Americans, 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.