Current:Home > ContactCalifornia governor vetoes "magic mushroom" and caste discrimination bills -Edge Finance Strategies
California governor vetoes "magic mushroom" and caste discrimination bills
PredictIQ View
Date:2025-04-08 16:35:39
California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed two bills Saturday that would have made California the first U.S. state to outlaw caste-based discrimination, and would have decriminalized the possession and personal use of several hallucinogens, including psychedelic mushrooms.
The legislation vetoed Saturday would have allowed those 21 and older to possess psilocybin, the hallucinogenic component in what's known as psychedelic mushrooms. It also would have covered dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and mescaline.
Newsom said the caste bill was unnecessary, saying California already has protections in place.
Why did the decriminalization of hallucinogens, including psychedelic mushrooms bill get vetoed?
The bill would not have legalized the sale of the substances and would have barred any possession of the substances on school grounds. Instead, it would have ensured people are neither arrested nor prosecuted for possessing limited amounts of plant-based hallucinogens. Newsom, a Democrat who championed legalizing cannabis in 2016, said in a statement Saturday that more needs to be done before California decriminalizes the hallucinogens.
"California should immediately begin work to set up regulated treatment guidelines — replete with dosing information, therapeutic guidelines, rules to prevent against exploitation during guided treatments, and medical clearance of no underlying psychoses," Newsom's statement said. "Unfortunately, this bill would decriminalize possession prior to these guidelines going into place, and I cannot sign it."
Even if California made the bill a law, the drugs would still be illegal under federal law.
In recent years, psychedelics have emerged as an alternative approach to treating a variety of mental illnesses, including post-traumatic stress disorder. The Federal Drug Administration designated psilocybin as a "breakthrough therapy" for treatment-resistant depression in 2019 and recently published a draft guideline on using psychedelics in clinical trials.
Public opinion on psychedelics, which have been mostly associated with 1960s drug culture, has also shifted to support therapeutic use. Supporters of the legislation include veterans, who have talked about the benefits of using psychedelics to treat trauma and other illnesses.
"Psilocybin gave me my life back," Joe McKay, a retired New York City firefighter who responded to the 9/11 attacks, said at an Assembly hearing in July. "No one should go to jail for using this medicine to try to heal."
But opponents said the drugs' benefits are still largely unknown, and the bill could lead to more crimes - though studies in recent years have shown decriminalization does not increase crime rates. Organizations representing parents also worry the legislation would make it easier for children and young people to access the drugs.
Why did the caste discrimination bill get vetoed?
Earlier this year, Seattle became the first U.S. city to add caste to its anti-discrimination laws. On Sept. 28, Fresno became the second U.S. city and the first in California to prohibit discrimination based on caste by adding caste and indigeneity to its municipal code.
In his message, Newsom called the bill "unnecessary," explaining that California "already prohibits discrimination based on sex , race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, and other characteristics, and state law specifies that these civil rights protections shall be liberally construed."
"Because discrimination based on caste is already prohibited under these existing categories, this bill is unnecessary," he said in the statement.
A United Nations report in 2016 said at least 250 million people worldwide still face caste discrimination in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Pacific regions, as well as in various diaspora communities. Caste systems are found among Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jains, Muslims and Sikhs. Caste is a division of people related to birth or descent. Those at the lowest strata of the caste system, known as Dalits, have been pushing for legal protections in California and beyond. They say it is necessary to protect them from bias in housing, education and in the tech sector - where they hold key roles.
In March, state Sen. Aisha Wahab, the first Muslim and Afghan American elected to the California Legislature, introduced the bill. The California law would have included caste as a sub-category under "ethnicity" — a protected category under the state's anti-discrimination laws.
Opponents, including some Hindu groups, called the proposed legislation "unconstitutional" and have said it would unfairly target Hindus and people of Indian descent. The issue has divided the Indian American community.
- In:
- California
veryGood! (749)
Related
- See you latte: Starbucks plans to cut 30% of its menu
- Find Out Which Real Housewife Is the Only One to Have Met Andy Cohen’s Daughter Lucy
- Proof Nick Carter’s Love of Fatherhood Is Larger Than Life
- Highly pathogenic avian flu detected at Alabama chicken farm, nearly 48K birds killed
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- New vehicles from Detroit’s automakers are planned in contracts that ended UAW strikes
- Over 4,000 baby loungers sold on Amazon recalled over suffocation, entrapment concerns
- A muted box office weekend without ‘Dune: Part Two’
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Pentagon pauses support for congressional travel to Israel
Ranking
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Defeat of Florida increases buyout of Arkansas coach Sam Pittman by more than $5 million
- Trump State Department official Federico Klein sentenced to nearly 6 years in prison for assault on Capitol
- Just Say Yes to Jason Kelce and Kylie Kelce's Love Story
- New Mexico governor seeks funding to recycle fracking water, expand preschool, treat mental health
- Big Ten commissioner has nothing but bad options as pressure to punish Michigan mounts
- Humanoid robots are here, but they’re a little awkward. Do we really need them?
- 'Avengers' stuntman dies in car crash along with two children on Atlanta highway Halloween night
Recommendation
What were Tom Selleck's juicy final 'Blue Bloods' words in Reagan family
Some houses are being built to stand up to hurricanes and sharply cut emissions, too
Virginia school board elections face a pivotal moment as a cozy corner of democracy turns toxic
Some houses are being built to stand up to hurricanes and sharply cut emissions, too
Costco membership growth 'robust,' even amid fee increase: What to know about earnings release
Israeli jets strike Gaza refugee camp, as US fails to win immediate support for pause in fighting
Minneapolis police investigating another fire at a mosque
Families of Israel hostages fear the world will forget. So they’re traveling to be living reminders