A group of 18 congressional lawmakers have signed a letter condemning the suspension of a star Olympics sprinter from participating in competition this year because of a failed marijuana test. And they\u2019re requesting that athletic governing bodies make a policy change to prevent it from happening again.<\/p>\n
The decision to suspend U.S. runner Sha\u2019Carri Richardson has generated widespread frustration, especially considering that she admitted to using cannabis in a legal state after learning news about the death of her biological mother.<\/p>\n
Reps. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), co-chairs of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, led the sign-on letter asking the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) to remove marijuana from the banned substances list.<\/p>\n
The lawmakers wrote that the marijuana ban \u201cis outdated and restrictive.\u201d And the letter states that while they agree that athletes \u201cshould not be under the influence of any substances during competition, we disagree that cannabis should be included in the list and that prior usage in an athlete\u2019s private life should be grounds for sanction,\u201d at least until technology is developed to test for active impairment.<\/p>\n
It further expresses concern that \u201ccannabis is on this list while alcohol, which has proven health risks associated with its use and abuse, is not.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe urge the USADA and [the World Anti-Doping Agency] to re-evaluate its criteria and decision to include cannabis, specifically tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) as a prohibited substance,\u201d it says. \u201cWe believe that cannabis does not meet the description of scientifically proven risk or harm to the athlete and the USADA is perpetuating stereotypes and rhetoric fueled by the racist War on Drugs by claiming its usage, in private use and outside of competition, violates the \u2018spirit of the sport.’\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe find it troubling that athletes are not permitted to consume cannabis in their private life, despite it being legal in the majority of states and territories. We respectfully ask for a response and a detailed rationale of why cannabis has been included as a prohibited substance for athletes in their private life in states and territories with legal cannabis by July 22, 2021.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other signatories of the new letter include Reps. Nydia M. Vel\u00e1zquez (D-NY), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA),\u00a0Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Charlie Crist (D-FL), Steve Cohen (D-TN)\u00a0 and Mark Pocan (D-WI). While President Joe Biden faced criticism after saying on Saturday that \u201cthe rules are the rules,\u201d fewer observers paid attention to the fact that he also suggested there\u2019s an open question about whether \u201cthey should remain the rules.\u201d<\/a> That\u2019s notable for a president who has maintained an opposition to adult-use legalization.<\/p>\n White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki similarly said in a CNN interview on Wednesday that it may be time for USADA to revise its policy<\/a>. That came after she had previously declined to condemn Olympics officials\u2019 sanction<\/a>\u00a0on Richardson when asked about the issue at a briefing with reporters.<\/p>\n USADA itself expressed sympathy for Richardson\u2019s case and said that \u201chopefully this case can be used as an example as to the reasons why it\u2019s time to revisit the issue.\u201d<\/p>\n USA Track & Field also said this week that international policy on cannabis punishments for athletes\u00a0\u201cshould be reevaluated.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n A bipartisan group of members of Congress slammed Richardson\u2019s punishment last week, with leaders of a key House subcommittee sending a separate scathing letter to the USADA and WADA, urging the bodies to \u201d strike a blow for civil liberties and civil rights by reversing this course you are on.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe divergent treatment of recreational alcohol and marijuana use reflects obsolete stereotypes about cannabis products and a profound misunderstanding of the relative risks of both substances,\u201d they said, noting that\u00a0major sports leagues<\/a>\u00a0such as the\u00a0NFL, MLB and NBA<\/a>\u00a0are making moves to\u00a0scale back or eliminate cannabis punishments<\/a>\u00a0for players.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, a powerful congressional committee recently a report that urges federal agencies to reconsider policies that result in the firing of employees who use marijuana legally in accordance with state law<\/a>.<\/p>\n Also, Nevada sports regulators voted on Wednesday to make it so athletes will\u00a0no longer be penalized over a positive marijuana test<\/a>, with members citing Richardson\u2019s case during the meeting as an example of why the policy is inappropriate.<\/p>\n For what it\u2019s worth, a new poll from YouGov found that women are\u00a0notably more likely to oppose Richardson\u2019s suspension<\/a>\u00a0than men are.<\/p>\n Read the congressional letter on the USADA marijuana suspension decision below:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n Lee Blumenauer USADA letter<\/a> by Marijuana Moment<\/a><\/p>\n Congressional Black Caucus Members Ask Biden To Reverse Marijuana Deportation Cases<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Congressional Lawmakers Request Marijuana Policy Change Following Sha\u2019Carri Richardson Suspension<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A group of 18 congressional lawmakers have signed a letter condemning the suspension of a star Olympics sprinter from participating in competition this year because of a failed marijuana test. And they\u2019re requesting that athletic governing bodies make a policy change to prevent it from happening again. The decision toContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48773"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48773"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48773\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48774,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48773\/revisions\/48774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\nRead More: Congressional Lawmakers Request Marijuana Policy Change Following Sha\u2019Carri Richardson Suspension<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"