Liberal Cannabis Legislation: Pre-Election

(Video an Appropriation)

Featured in the video are Canadian cannabis activists Marc and Jodie Emery, Canadian Liberal Politician Justin Trudeau, some fans, and a few journalists. Though it comes down to the legalization of marijuana in Canada, the Canadian government has all the power. The Conservative Party has not budged on the progression of cannabis legislation so if changes are ever to be made to current law, it is up to an opposing government to do so. Justin Trudeau along with The Liberal Party of Canada (if they win the federal election) have made promises to take immediate action by legalizing cannabis nation-wide.

Reflective Essay:

I had recently learned how to tell stories through creating appropriations last semester in the Remix Culture elective course. This appropriation consists of five sources of media. Three sources were gathered online, the other two I had recently shot myself. I mixed the sources together with the end result being a three minute and thirty second video. The video is current, and tells the informational and personal story of cannabis as controversy continues to burn through Canadian Parliament.

The major player‘s involved in today’s legal battle of cannabis are all veteran public speakers with strong, known voices. I included footage of the historic day when activist Marc Emery had passed through Toronto, immediately after his release from a five year American prison sentence. I had gathered exclusive footage that weekend of Emery during a powerful speech at a private rally. These activists, now along with political figureheads like Justin Trudeau, are the ones who one day will push for change towards cannabis regulation in Canada. Together they’ve founded the evolving movement in which the current Canadian government argues today. Should medical cannabis, and/or recreational cannabis be legal in Canada?

There was a lot of information I had chosen to leave out of the final product as in the end, I feel it did not add to the politics of the story. Though the topic is broad, the angle of this story was to discuss it’s current state in parliament. There was an interview with Angelo (medical user) I recorded as an audio file, though it was too long, and in the end was cut along with other footage. I had also cut over two minutes of original footage which I had wanted to include though it’s running time would have been way too long.

Prior to beginning my research, I had known that medical cannabis was a broad topic, though did not ever stop to think just how broad it actually was. One interesting fact that I had learned was that medical research studies in relation to the herbal treatment of medical cannabis was just as prominent in pets (dogs and cats) as it was for humans. There have been countless trials which all conclude that the cannabis extract known as cbd decreases seizures among patients (both animal and human) by approximately 99 percent. Not only that, I had learned there is a multi-million, if not billion dollar international market for cbd infused pet foods. With the right veterinary prescription, one can purchase these products simply by going online.

Works Cited / Sources:

1. MARC AND JODIE EMERY ON CP24 DISCUSS MARIJUANA LEGISLATION YouTube. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mEYHJgasYI

2. Princess of Pot Jodie Emery: Trudeau Liberals only option for marijuana legalization. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lh7CvKAY6I

3. RAW - Justin Trudeau about marijuana, immigration, Stephen Harper... (see description for topics). (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XlqRfr40LQ

4. Included exclusive footage of Canadian activists Marc and Jodie Emery which I had shot here in Toronto immediately after Marc was released from American prison. He had been sentenced and served five years for distributing medical grade cannabis seeds cross-border from Canada to the United States.