Nathan Farias, a Bridgewater State College freshman, said he’d rather see drug use medicalized than criminalized.
“In this country, we make users into outcasts and disenfranchise them. With this past election, I feel it was a step in the right direction,” said Farias, 18, of Taunton.
The Independent stopped by the Bridgewater State College campus center Monday to chat with students like Farias about their thoughts on the Nov. 4 ballot initiative that decriminalized possession of up to an ounce of marijuana.
Most, though not all, said they voted yes. Many who supported the initiative said they do not smoke marijuana but support the right of others to make that choice without facing criminal charges.
All of the students said they were aware the drug has not been legalized, but rather decriminalized, and people caught with up to an ounce will be subject to fines. But some said they think quite a few of their classmates are not aware of the distinction.
Farias, who would like to be a police officer and doesn’t use drugs, said he thinks marijuana arrests are a waste of taxpayers’ money, tying up police officers’ time on petty crimes.
He’d like to see a system similar to Canada’s for serious drugs like heroin, in which users can inject in a clinical setting with supervision from a nurse, instead of with dirty needles on the streets.
As to marijuana, he’d like to see it legalized, with appropriate restrictions, similar to those for alcohol, on public consumption, age and driving while under the influence.
Jessica Bamford, a sophomore at the college, said she doesn’t take drugs and considers them unhealthy but is “pro-choice” when it comes to their use by others.
The 23-year-old from Rockland, who is studying to be a writer, said her work as a pharmacy technician has given her an interesting perspective on drugs. She views both illegal and many prescription drugs as treating symptoms rather than getting to the root of a problem.
She thinks making marijuana legal might eventually make it seem less cool to kids.
“I think it’s a way of avoiding the issues in life. I think making it legal will make it less of the forbidden fruit,” Bamford said.
Ed Finch, a 20-year-old sophomore from Franklin, voted against decriminalization for a couple of reasons. One was “purely financial,” he said. His father is a Boston police officer who gets a lot of overtime when he has to go to court after a marijuana arrest, Finch said.
“I was frustrated with my stoner friends. They’re obnoxious, but I put up with them,” Finch said.
Bria Wilbur, president of the student group the Social Justice League, said she also voted no. She said she had a friend in her freshman year who struggled unsuccessfully with drug use and was unable to get help.
“I have a strong stance against drugs. It think it will open too many doors,” said Wilbur, 21, a senior from Easton who wants to work with juvenile substance abusers.
Wilbur said she hasn’t heard a lot of talk about the new law on campus except right before and after the election. A lot of students seemed excited about it and seemed to think marijuana had been fully legalized, she said.
Farias said he’d heard about some kids who smoked pot in front of police officers the day after the election, apparently unaware the new law hadn’t yet taken effect and still imposes civil penalties.
Christine Leal, 18 of Wareham, and Sarah Rondeau, 18 of East Bridgewater, said they discussed the ballot initiative in their freshman English class. Most of the students seemed to favor the initiative, though a few raised objections, they said.
“I think it’s good because I think there are a lot worse things we should be focused on,” Leal said.
Rondeau, who also voted yes, said she avoids drugs but a lot of her friends smoke marijuana, she said.
“I don’t think there’s any point to it. I don’t think it’s worth my time,” she said of drug use.
Rondeau said she doesn’t think the new law will have a big impact on drug use. People who are determined to smoke will do it even if it’s a criminal offense, she said.
“A lot of people have already made up their minds whether or not they’ll smoke,” Farias said.
Farias said he thinks there’s a generation gap when it comes to marijuana.
A lot of young people don’t view it as that big a deal, while older people still see it as very serious, he said. He thinks there will probably be a cultural shift in society’s perception of the drug now that it has been decriminalized, similar to the change in the perception of issues such as race relations.
Pot will come to be viewed as more like alcohol than heroin, he said, not necessarily good for you, but without the stigma, Farias said.
