Food union backs Proposition 19, California’s marijuana legalization issue

A major food union has become the latest to throw its support behind California’s marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot, the Examiner reported.

As our Los Angeles marijuana defense attorneys reported on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, Proposition 19 would legalize possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by those over the age of 21. Support and opposition are running neck-and-neck in polls and the outcome will likely be in doubt right up until the election.

The 200,000 member United Food and Commercial Workers Union has officially thrown its support behind the measure.

“We view Proposition 19 as an enhanced version of the previous proposition, that creates taxable revenue, and produces jobs in agriculture, health care, retail and possibly textile,” said George Landers, executive director of the food workers union. “We further believe that the proposition will deprive narco-traffickers of a significant source of criminal revenue.”

The union’s Local 5 has about 26,000 members in California and has already started a drive to organize workers. It also seeks to add employees of the expanding marijuana industry to its membership.

Meanwhile, The New York TImes reports that blacks are split on the issue despite the California NAACP’s decision support marijuana legalization. However, those courting the black vote got a boost recently with the endorsement of Dr. Joycelyn Elders, the first black to hold the position of U.S. surgeon general, the nation’s top medical officer.

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