When Washington state passed legislation that taxed and regulated marijuana, Moe Spencer walked away from his 11-year-long practice as a public defender to open his own law practice to help individuals navigate the new marijuana laws.
“I packed up, opened my own office and let people know I offered these services, helping with licensing,” Spencer said. “The phone didn”t stop ringing for weeks.”
In addition to dealing with cases regarding marijuana law, the Seattle-based attorney said he also travels and gives lectures about the history and legalization of marijuana.
This week, Spencer will visit the University of Idaho to do just that – discuss the history, public perceptions and nuances of legalizing marijuana.
Spencer”s presentation, “Smoke Screen: Under the Influence of Marijuana, Politics and Power” will be held from 8-10 p.m. Wednesday in the Bruce Pitman Center.
Spencer said he divides his lectures, which average around 55 minutes long, into two parts.
“I start with the history of why marijuana was illegal and within that, I talk about it has a lot to do with race,” Spencer said. “It has a lot to do with black folks, it has a lot to do with low-hanging fruit, and by low hanging fruit I mean black neighborhoods.”
In addition to being racially driven, Spencer said the drug”s illegal status also had a lot to do with socioeconomic class and policing the public.
“I also talk about William Randolph Hearst who used to write in newspapers at the turn of the century about blacks smoking this stuff and raping white women,” Spencer said. “It was yellow journalism, a term given to untrue, sensational stories. I talk about Nixon, the Controlled Substances Act, which was in the federal law on drugs, which includes marijuana.”
Spencer said he always incorporates evidence into his presentations, and brings newspaper clippings, advertisements and other documents to show his audience.
The second part of Spencer”s presentation is about the laws regarding marijuana.
Spencer said he covers the laws set in place by Washington state as well as the current marijuana laws of the state he”s visiting.
“The second half is on licensing in Washington state and then within there, toward the end, I do five to seven minutes on your particular state,” Spencer said.
This includes an explanation of different state statutes, and whether a state allows for the growth and possession of marijuana.
“I show you where the statute shows how many flowers you can have, that”s what we call marijuana, flowers,” Spencer said. “Some states don”t allow to grow any, some states do.”
In addition to a lecture, Spencer said he follows up every talk with a questions and answers period.
Camille Awbrey, Vandal Entertainment lectures and performing arts chair, said she invited Spencer to speak at UI after attending one of his lectures at a conference in November.
Of all of the speakers at the conference, Awbrey said Spencer was the one who stood out to her most.
“He has a lot of good information. He”s a really good speaker and I think it”s a controversial issue that”s so relevant to the times,” Awbrey said. “At the same time, he”s a very personable guy and it”s a very interesting topic.”
Awbrey said she would encourage all students – even those who oppose the legalization of marijuana – to attend the lecture for the chance to learn new information and partake in discussions about a topical social issue.
“I think it”s smart to be informed on what”s going on around the nation,” Awbrey said. “I think a lot of people are pro or con marijuana and very passionate about that, but it”s cool to hear what the health benefits are, what the health costs are, how marijuana can be used like hemp and whatnot. It”s a very broad reach and I think it”s going to reach a lot of people in some way, shape or form.”
Corrin Bond can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @CorrBond