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Mike Tyson pleads with Trump to deliver on cannabis reform: 'IT'S DONE SO MUCH FOR ME'

Mike Tyson pleads with Trump to deliver on cannabis reform: 'IT'S DONE SO MUCH FOR ME'

National Posta day ago
Mike Tyson is one of many athletes who are pushing for cannabis reform in the United States, and is hoping President Donald Trump will pick up where his predecessor, Joe Biden, left off.
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The Coalition of Athletes and Entertainers Supporting President Trump's Policy Objectives, which also includes NBA star Kevin Durant and former NFL star Dez Bryant, penned a letter to the White House in an effort to 'address marijuana-related injustices.'
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According to Marijuana Moment, the letter mentions three main points in their proposed reform: Clemency for 'nonviolent' marijuana offences, chancing the drug's current classification from a Schedule I substance to a Schedule III substance, and ending 'discriminatory banking practices.'
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Tyson appeared on Fox & Friends on Monday, where he told the hosts: 'Cannabis is in the same category as heroin. How do you categorize it with heroin? Anybody that would smoke cannabis knows there's no comparison, and that's just ridiculous.'
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The boxing legend explained that the group wants to 'open up' safe banking for those in the cannabis industry who are currently unable to get loans.
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'There's over 500,000 people that can't get loans because they're in the cannabis business alone and that's just so ridiculous,' he said, noting how it's such a great income for the country.'
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Tyson went on to explain how he has used cannabis as medicine, and how it's made such improvements in his life.
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'I could not live, I was going crazy without cannabis. I was just going absolutely mad, fighting people in the street, giving wild responses back to people who said, 'Can I help you?'' Tyson detailed.
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'And then it's done so much for me,' the 59-year-old continued.
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'It's given me a new life, so to speak … all the reckless trouble I was getting into [as a kid], that's not happening now as an adult.'
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@MikeTyson calls it ridiculous that cannabis is still classified in the same drug schedule as crack cocaine and heroin pic.twitter.com/44yYAxCB9T
— FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) June 30, 2025
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The letter from the fleet of athletes and entertainers slammed Biden for failing to take action against those who are behind bars for crimes associated with the substance.
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'After making sweeping promises to voters in 2020, former President Biden failed to deliver on his pledge to address marijuana-related injustices,' the letter states.
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'Not only did he leave office without commuting the sentences of those incarcerated for marijuana, but in one of his final acts, he denied nearly every pending marijuana-related clemency application,' it notes.
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School officials question Quebec's new cellphone ban and civility code
School officials question Quebec's new cellphone ban and civility code

CTV News

timean hour ago

  • CTV News

School officials question Quebec's new cellphone ban and civility code

Quebec Education Minister Bernard Drainville responds to the Opposition during question period at the legislature in Quebec City, Oct. 22, 2024. (The Canadian Press/Jacques Boissinot) The Quebec Ministry of Education has released its draft regulation outlining a complete ban on cellphones in schools, along with new civility rules for the province. In May, the government announced it would expand its cellphone ban by prohibiting students in elementary and high school from using their devices anywhere on school property. In addition to the ban, Education Minister Bernard Drainville also said students would have to follow a civility code and address teachers formally as 'sir and madame.' However, some education officials say that enforcement will be difficult amid budget cuts and believe the government should be focusing on more urgent matters. Joe Ortona, president of the Quebec English School Boards Association, questioned whether enforcement would lead to staff 'shortfalls.' 'With all due respect to the minister, his priority shouldn't be on ensuring that these rules get enforced. It should be on ensuring that we have adequate staff,' Ortona argued in a recent interview. 'Rome is burning, and the minister is coming out with rules about proper etiquette and formal ways to address people and a cell phone ban while we're dealing with hundreds of millions of dollars of cuts and what exactly that's going to entail.' According to the draft regulation, there are a few exceptions to the ban, including health reasons, special needs and for pedagogical use. Moreover, each school will have to decide what disciplinary measures to implement for students who contravene the new rules. Katherine Korakakis, the president of the English Parents' Committee Association of Quebec, said that the harmful effects of cellphones do need to be mitigated, but raised doubts about whether the ban is the right measure. 'From parents, what we've heard and what we've always advocated is taking away the cell phones without teaching children about the effects of sound cell phones becomes a punitive measure and doesn't do anything to address the crisis,' Korakakis explained. 'So now you're putting something in place that is not enforceable. There are not enough teachers on hand. There are not enough staff members on hand.' The ban was recommended by a committee of legislature members tasked with studying the impact of screen time and social media on youth. In an interim report published in April, the committee found that mobile devices were everywhere on school grounds, and it heard from specialists who said extending the ban could reduce students' screen time and encourage other activities, such as socializing. Korakakis added that parents have expressed concern about not being able to reach their children. 'We raised this with the ministry and explained that, for the English-speaking community, there are real concerns — like not being able to reach your child, especially for students with special needs who take public transit. The ministry told us that as long as phones are kept in lockers, it's not a problem. But they were already in lockers to begin with,' she said. The new rules come into effect in the fall. With files from The Canadian Press

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