'Our mere existence is illegal.' As Mosw toughens anti-gay law, LGBTQ Rsians fear for the future | CNN

Contents:

• IS WEED GAY?: CANNABIS AND QUEER HEALTH
• LEGALIZE GAY MARIJUANA BARS
• POT LEGALIZATN IS NOT THE NEW GAY MARRIAGE
• GAY MARRIAGE, MARIJUANA INIATIV MAKE HISTORY
• LEGALIZE GAY MARIJUANA
• BIG NIGHT FOR GAY MARRIAGE AND MARIJUANA LEGALIZATN
• HOW GAY MARRIAGE IS LIKE LEGALIZG POT
• ‘OUR MERE EXISTENCE IS ILLEGAL.’ AS MOSW TOUGHENS ANTI-GAY LAW, LGBTQ RSIANS FEAR FOR THE FUTURE
• PRO-POT PH: THE NEXT GAY MARRIAGE
• POT LEGALIZATN IS NOT THE NEW GAY MARRIAGE

IS WEED GAY?: CANNABIS AND QUEER HEALTH

“Unlike stupid rporate brands that are hoppg on the bandwagon to sell their shty merchandise when they once were nomally anti-gay, nnabis pani have pretty much never been anti-queer, as far as I know.

The openly gay man actually fought to legalize nnabis well before the AIDS epimic, but when the disease began to ravage the gay muny, Peron opened a Cannabis Buyers’ Club, where dividuals wh AIDS and other illns uld purchase nnabis to help migate pa, nsea, headach, wastg syndrome, anxiety, prsn, and other symptoms associated wh HIV/AIDS.

Backstage at a Pri party thrown by California-based edibl pany Kiva Confectns, RuPl’s Drag Race alumn Laganja Estranja proved this pot before I uld even fish askg her why there are so many gay stoners out there. And if weed is part of that journey for you, you’re good pany wh lns of queer people who believe s place health and more om Is Weed Gay? In the 10 years I’ve been workg marijuana law reform, there is one other movement that has also ma credible advanc jt a – the fight for marriage equaly for gays and lbians.

LEGALIZE GAY MARIJUANA BARS

Bh won re-electn partially thanks to eleven succsful anti-gay marriage iativ on state ballots that drove social nservativ to the polls. It wasn’t a very good time to be a gay pot smoker, I suppose. Gay people are not generally unr the threat of beg jailed for who they are.

POT LEGALIZATN IS NOT THE NEW GAY MARRIAGE

Gay people are herently gay. Gay people n’t be outed through a ure tt. Image if the Supreme Court, handg down their recent lg legalizg gay marriage, had said that was OK for two men or two women to marry, but they are forbidn om displayg affectn for one another any public place, as fed above.

It’s not a perfect analogy – you’re not gog to hale any “sendhand gay” if two dus are kissg a public place. What is the orig of 'Legalize Gay Weed' (assumg has a distct start)?

A Synchrono StggleThough separate enti, the LGBTQIA+ (the acronym stands for lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, qutng, tersex, asexual, and the + holds space for the expandg and new unrstandg of different parts of the very diverse genr and sexual inti) and nnabis movements often fd themselv on the same si of the fence the fight for civil liberti. Acrdg to a report om the Harvard Bs Review, stat that legalized gay marriage and marijuana simultaneoly experienced a 5–6 percent crease novatn output. But wasn’t until the visual effect of young whe men dyg the hospals wh AIDS that shook the nscience of Ameri and began to change the law, ” said Pl Stt, print of the Los Angel Black Gay Pri Associatn and longtime marijuana and HIV activist.

GAY MARRIAGE, MARIJUANA INIATIV MAKE HISTORY

Dennis Peron, a gay Air Force Veteran who served durg the Vietnam War, led the ph for the legalizatn of medil nnabis. Far om a hippie movement, the legalizatn of marijuana was motivated by the gay muny as a rponse to the needs of those sufferg om AIDS. For example, heterosexism monly stills shame LGBTQ dividuals who may ternalize the homophobia that society directs toward them.

Those who intify as gay or lbian are more than twice as likely as heterosexuals to have a severe alhol or tobac e disorr. Unfortunately, the nightlife culture lends self to substance e and abe, exposg s participants to, the next 20 years or so, all I knew was that if you are gay, you go to bars and clubs, " he told Healthle.

LEGALIZE GAY MARIJUANA

It’s like ‘you’re gay, here’s a bottle, here’s a bag. Anonymo gay man, who revered om dg and alhol abeWhat was once a eful tool as an valuable treatment for HIV has bee an untend and harmful nsequence of the stggle wh margalizatn and opprsn. A study that looked explicly at parental awarens found that LGBTQ youth whose fai were aware of their sexual orientatn reported signifintly ls ternalized homophobia and creased fay support.

BIG NIGHT FOR GAY MARRIAGE AND MARIJUANA LEGALIZATN

Homelsns puts adolcents at extreme risk for future substance abe and mental health bullyg and harassment have a more obv impact on the risk of substance abe, exposure to herent homophobia society gras the self-worth and nfince of LGBTQ youth. Among the experienc, the transgenr muny bears the bnt, rultg addictn rat that are notably “disproportnately higher” pared to lbian, gay, and bisexual dividuals. The ntual exposure to external homophobia nsequently fosters ternalized homophobia—a ep-seated belief that beg LGBTQ is morally rrect and unnatural—acpanied by self-loathg, secury, and anxiety.

Recent studi have revealed that up to 55% of LGBTQ dividuals experience some gree of ternalized homophobia. 4% of gay, lbian, and bisexual (LGB) stunts had ed marijuana pared to 28.

Safe Schools Coaln Support group for gay, lbian, bisexual, transgenr queer, and qutng youth that provis many rourceful lks. ” Accsed on June 5, “Rearch: Legal Marijuana and Gay Marriage Have Been Good for U.

HOW GAY MARRIAGE IS LIKE LEGALIZG POT

” Accsed June 6, “The Health of Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgenr People: Buildg a Foundatn for Better Unrstandg.

‘OUR MERE EXISTENCE IS ILLEGAL.’ AS MOSW TOUGHENS ANTI-GAY LAW, LGBTQ RSIANS FEAR FOR THE FUTURE

” Accsed June 6, “2018 Natnal Survey on Dg Use and Health: Lbian, Gay, & Bisexual (LGB) Adults.

” Accsed June 6, “Prejudice, Social Strs, and Mental Health Lbian, Gay, and Bisexual Populatns: Conceptual Issu and Rearch Evince.

PRO-POT PH: THE NEXT GAY MARRIAGE

” Accsed June 12, “A Provir’s Introductn to Substance Abe Treatment for Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgenr Individuals.

” Accsed June 13, “Disclosure of Sexual Orientatn and Subsequent Substance Use and Abe Among Lbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youths: Cril Role of Disclosure Reactns. ” Accsed June 24, “Parents’ Awarens of Lbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youths’ Sexual Orientatn.

At the Monkey Cage, Joshua Tucker wonrs whether pot is the new gay marriage, while Andrew Sullivan jubilantly clar that same-sex marriage and pot legalizatn are both wng their battl, which are fundamentally "about brgg outlaws to the civil mastream. New Jersey jt beme the fourteenth state to allow gay marriage, while last November, Colorado and Washgton legalized marijuana for recreatnal e. Legal pot is ls polarizg than gay marriage.

POT LEGALIZATN IS NOT THE NEW GAY MARRIAGE

The battle is over when advot nvce Amerins to change their mds about whether gay upl should be clud a pre-existg social fight for marijuana legalizatn is more volatile.

But the se for same-sex marriage is ls ambiguo; if you have a gay iend or fay member, 's hard to image why they shouldn't be allowed to shape their liv g the same buildg blocks that heterosexual upl have relied on for centuri. The pro-pot movement's gas are unniably imprsive-they're jt on a shakier foundatn than the gay-marriage movement's slower but steadier, advanc.

Supporters of marijuana legalizatn and gay marriage also saw big ws on Electn Day. Gay marriage: The LGBT muny saw historic ws across the untry Tuday as voters Mae and Maryland legalized same-sex marriage and voters Mnota feated an amendment to their state nstutn that would have fed marriage as beg between a man and a woman. Mae beme the first state the natn Tuday to legalize gay marriage through a cizen-brought iative and Mnota was one of the first stat to feat a nstutnal amendment backed by the Natnal Organizatn for Marriage.