A Mississippi Indian tribe has approved a vote to legalize pot on its land.
The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, after a week of hearings, voted in favor of the reform of cannabis, with 55 to 45 percent. Unofficial results were posted on Tuesday by the tribe.
On the ballots, tribal members were asked: “Do You Support the Tribe Developing legislation to decriminalize, regulate, and control the possession, production and distribution of cannabis on Tribal land?” This approval makes the tribe Mississippi’s only legal source of adult-use marijuana.
The Mississippi Free Press reports that at one hearing, Chief Cyrus Ben told the audience: “This does not authorize or legalize cannabis on Choctaw tribe trust land.”
But now that the measure has been approved, the Tribal Council is poised to engage consultants to conduct a feasibility study of legalization, along with research on potential regulations.
This is one of the latest examples of increased interest among certain Native American communities to enact reform within their borders—despite federal prohibition and, in cases like Mississippi, state law.
According to a new map published by the Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association in conjunction with Vicente, more than one-fourth of Indigenous communities within the United States have marijuana or hemp program.
In North Carolina, where cannabis remains illegal for medical and adult-use purposes, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians approved a legalization referendum in 2023, and sales began last year.
It’s drawn attention from congressional lawmakers, including Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), who last month asked President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to investigate the legal implications of the policy.
In Montana, meanwhile, marijuana was legalized statewide through a ballot initiative in 2020, and the legislature recently passed a bill that would allow the governor to enter into compacts with Indian tribes to remove barriers to their participation in the industry.
Minnesota has a similar system of compact agreements, which allows adult cannabis use. Governor. Tim Walz, a Democrat from Minnesota, signed with the White Earth Band Minnesota Chippewa Tribe the first state cannabis compact.
It’s believed that in 2020, the Oglala Sioux Tribe, located in South Dakota, became the first tribe to vote to legalize marijuana within a U.S. state where the plant remained illegal.
In Wisconsin, indigenous leaders have worked together to craft a campaign called Wisconsin Wellness, which last year held an event at the state Capitol in favor of legalizing medical marijuana.
In Mississippi, the use of medical marijuana was legalized by 2022 but adult-use marijuana is still prohibited.
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Mike Latimer provided the photo.