Comment

Comment by Teresa Sitz on December 20, 2012 at 9:46am

I am a new member of the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council and one of the co-authors of the two motions addressing medical marijuana.

Since September of last year each of Silver Lake's five medical marijuana dispensaries has been closed. One dispensary was on Hoover, the other four were on Sunset Boulevard. Only one of the Sunset Boulevard dispensaries directly faced the street. Two were tucked into the backs of mini malls and one was in an office complex with an off street entrance. I mention this because, unlike other neighborhoods, the dispensaries in Silver Lake kept low profiles.

The motions that my colleague, Charles Herman-Wurmfeld, and I submitted ask for two things: a public forum on safe access to medical marijuana, and a letter from the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council asking the Los Angeles City Council to exempt the Silver Lake dispensaries from the de facto ban and to allow them to reopen.

The closure of the Silver Lake dispensaries has caused a hardship for people whose illnesses and disabilities are being treated with medical marijuana. We spoke with several patients shortly after the shops were closed. One man, Brian, has AIDS and uses medical marijuana to stimulate his appetite and stave off the affects of wasting, one of the main causes of death for AIDS patients. Brian told us he had not eaten in four days, that the dispensary he used was closed and he was unable to get medication.

Dispensaries, for those unfamiliar, are collectives. When a patient goes to a dispensary he is required to fill out an application and provide ID and a doctor's recommendation. Once the application is approved he is sent to a waiting room. Only one person at a time is allowed in the dispensary so he may have to wait some time for his turn. If, upon entering, he finds that the dispensary does not stock his medication, then he has to start the entire process over again somewhere else.

For people with mental or physical disabilities, or medical conditions including HIV/AIDS, finding a dispensary, filling out the application, getting comfortable with the staff and finding the best medication for their particular needs is not something that they want to do repeatedly, nor should they have to.

The closing of the Silver Lake dispensaries creates a separate and unequal, two-tiered system. Patients who choose to treat their illnesses with medical marijuana are required to jump through hoops that are not required by those using prescription drugs. Medical marijuana patients are stigmatized and shamed by people who accuse them of not really needing medicine, not appearing sick or sick enough, or of just wanting to get high. This adds to the stresses patients are already experiencing.

Please support the reopening of Silver Lake's medical marijuana dispensaries.