Robert Randall, a determined glaucoma sufferer, made history 45 years ago when he became the first American under prohibition to obtain a legal supply cannabis grown, processed, and delivered by federal government.
Alice O’Leary Randall is his widow and a lifelong reform activist. To mark the anniversary, she has released a digitalized “Factual Record”, preserving the legacy and work of the pioneering marijuana activists and early activists, who contributed to the modest cannabis legalization campaign.
Randall had achieved something remarkable just two years prior to the settlement. He was charged with illegal cannabis possession and fought the case. He convinced a judge in superior court that his marijuana use was a “medical need,” a common-law defense that shielded him from prosecution.
Randall, who was 28 at the time, argued that cannabis could be used to treat his glaucoma and preserve his vision in a way that other pharmaceuticals approved by the federal government could not. The judge agreed with the claim that this situation was a legal emergency.
The 1976 landmark ruling by the Superior Court of the District of Columbia was one of the most significant victories in the federal government’s drug war. It paved the way for future reforms which recognized the therapeutic benefits of marijuana and the importance of protecting civil liberties of patients who sought out the substance.
Randall did not stop there. He then petitioned the federal government to gain legal access to Schedule I plants, and he was granted that right as well. The government was legally required to supply the patient with medical marijuana, which consisted of hundreds of standardized joints delivered in a large can.
Later, he was joined by several other patients in the “Compassionate New Drug Investigation (IND) Program” of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). But the work did not stop there.
Randall was committed to making a comprehensive change to all patients who want cannabis as a treatment alternative.
His activism did not earn him any favours from the federal government. As he was preparing to give interviews to a throng of international journalists who had followed the case, Peter Bourne, President Jimmy Carter’s drug adviser, gave him a threat. Bourne said that in 1977, “publicity has forced you into tightening up your supply.”
Randall continued to push despite the fact that the federal government had been a salty dealer.
Alice O’Leary Randall is a professor of Pacific College of Health & Science. She doesn’t wish to see that legacy fade. She is not only interested in the fascinating chapter of this decades-long reformation, but also because she believes that “those who do not know the past will repeat it.”
“I see many people who are, well, a bit arrogant, in the marijuana debate now. Randall said in a Friday phone interview with Marijuana Moment that they think the problem is solved. “It is still Schedule I.” “We still have people denied access to medical cannabis.”
She also decided to create this online library because, “not only my husband but I can list dozens of patients who gave their last days to try to convince people that this drug was available through prescription to allow them to access it like any other drug.”
It’s important to keep in mind those people. She said that “a lot of money is made off the backs” of these people.
Randall responded that her husband would be “torn” if he were to see the changes in marijuana policies that have occurred over the past two decades.
On one hand, “he would be thrilled that literally millions of people are receiving their certificates of medical need in this country and being able go to a pharmacy–and the selection of products is absolutely fantastic.”
He’d also be angry about adult use. It’s not that Randall, or her late-husband, opposed it, but she says he would be outraged to see the medical and recreational markets consolidated, and policies driven by profits and not patient and consumer needs.
She said that in 1996, when Prop 215 was passed [in California], Robert worried that it wasn’t being promoted by people who had pure intentions. “Bob was worried that this would lead to the situation we are in today, to be honest. He’d be torn. “I think I’m sure he would be torn.”
Randall plans to release the documents, which include court records and media clips as well as letters, online over time, once they are digitized. She has also created what she called “monographs,” which focus on certain topics, such as ” the early days the medical cannabis movement.”
The search for the documents was more difficult than she had anticipated, but it has led to a detailed account of events which would otherwise have been lost in history. Randall hopes that the next generation will study these events to learn important lessons about advocacy.
What is her advice to the next generation? She laughed and said: “Read the history, look back, and see how you got where you are–find out what you did to get your job.” Even 20 years ago you would not have found these jobs. Respect the people who came before you. This is why I started this project. There’s a lot more to come.”
Randall: “It is important to realize that those who fought for medical marijuana in the 1980s were up against so many obstacles, but they never gave up.” “They knew they were right. They knew they were right. “That sense of righteousness really came through.”
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Photo by Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.
The post Activist Preserves The Legacy Of Husband Won Right To Med Marijuana Grown by The Feds 45 Year first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
