Kamala Harris once laughed at weed legalization. Now she's proposing to erase old weed-related convictions.
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), a 2020 presidential candidate, has continued to shift away from her past as a tough-on-crime prosecutor in San Francisco.
Harris and Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), are introducing legislation that would decriminalize marijuana at the federal level. That's pretty standard in Democratic circles these days, but the new bill would also expunge old convictions related to marijuana charges. Convictions for sales to minors would not be stricken from the record.
"Despite the legalization of marijuana in states across the country, those with criminal convictions for marijuana still face second class citizenship," Nadler said in a statement. "Their vote, access to education, employment, and housing are all negatively impacted. Racially motivated enforcement of marijuana laws has disproportionally impacted communities of color."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Harris' changing tune on drug offenses has not escaped the notice of critics, however. Forbes reported that Harris once laughed when asked about her Republican attorney general's support for marijuana legalization in 2014 and she did not back a 2010 California measure that would have led to marijuana legalization in the state. Of course, Harris is not the first presidential candidate to evolve with the times — and, hey, she even freely admitted that she partook herself as an undergraduate.
"As a former prosecutor who did not endorse legalization in California, this is an opportunity for her to establish a new stance on this subject," University of Denver's marijuana policy expert Sam Kamin said.
Read more about Harris' evolving views on crime here at The Week.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Two ancient cities have been discovered along the Silk Road
Under the radar The discovery changed what was known about the old trade route
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
'People shouldn't have to share the road with impaired drivers'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Is academic freedom in peril?
Today's Big Question Faculty punishments are on the rise
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
ATF finalizes rule to close 'gun show loophole'
Speed Read Biden moves to expand background checks for gun buyers
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Hong Kong passes tough new security law
Speed Read It will allow the government to further suppress all forms of dissent
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
France enshrines abortion rights in constitution
speed read It became the first country to make abortion a constitutional right
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Texas executes man despite contested evidence
Speed Read Texas rejected calls for a rehearing of Ivan Cantu's case amid recanted testimony and allegations of suppressed exculpatory evidence
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Supreme Court wary of state social media regulations
Speed Read A majority of justices appeared skeptical that Texas and Florida were lawfully protecting the free speech rights of users
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Greece legalizes same-sex marriage
Speed Read Greece becomes the first Orthodox Christian country to enshrine marriage equality in law
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump and his lawyer Alina Habba have a rough day in defamation court
Speed Read Trump's audible grousing as E. Jean Carroll testified earned him a warning he could be thrown out of court, and Habba showed she 'doesn't know what the hell she's doing'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Anders Breivik to testify in prison isolation lawsuit against Norway
Speed Read Far-right fanatic who killed 77 people in 2011 claims he has received 'inhuman treatment' in custody
By The Week UK Published