Andrew Yang, a former Democrat presidential runner in the 2020 election is now running for mayor of New York City and is urging for the legalization of both marijuana and psilocybin during his campaign.
Psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug compound produced by more than 200 species of fungus, is being aggressively studied as a means to reduce anxiety and depression and could do wonders for the mental health care system.
At a New York City Mayoral forum, Yang remarked, “The war on drugs has been a war on people. We can all see that. I’m for the total decriminalization of cannabis and marijuana, and we have to make sure that communities of color actually participate in the economic gains that are going to result from legalization.”
He added, “I’m for the decriminalization of many of these prescription opiates that, frankly, the drug companies have generated billions of dollars of blood money from.”
He went on to say, “If you have these drug companies profiting to this level and then turning around—because what happens is a lot of the times people graduate from those prescription drugs to other forms of opiates, and then we’re criminalizing that behavior even though it was induced by this corporate behemoth that made billions of dollars. To me this is not so much like a criminal activity problem as it is a public health problem.”
When asked where he stands on decriminalizing all currently illicity substances, the candidate for NYC Mayor said that law enforcement should “not be pursuing people for possession” and added, “I’m for legalization of psilocybin mushrooms, and I’m open to the public policy impact of legalizing other substances.”
Other candidates like Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams said he does not support drug decriminization but he is in favor of legalizing marijuana for adult use.
“You guys know I’m ex po-po, so I have a different view on some of these things,” said Adams, referring to his prior experience as a law enforcement officer.
“Although I was arrested and beat by police officers, I also know the impact of drugs. I support 100 percent legalization of marijuana, but anytime we open the shops, we need to make sure that people who were demonized and criminalized, they are able to make their lives whole again.”
New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer, who is also running for the position of mayor said, “I think we have to come to terms with the fact that, when people have drug issues, the truth of the matter is, this is not when you take the handcuffs out.”
