Alison Holcomb

Name: Alison
Holcomb

Ocupation: Criminal
Justice Director for the ACLU of Washington State

How did you become
involved in the cannabis movement?

I first became involved in the cannabis movement through my
work with Jeff Steinborn doing criminal defense and civil asset forfeiture
representation of individuals accused of growing, selling or simply possessing
marijuana. Having the opportunity to work with Jeff and represent these
individuals, I really started to see the faces of the folks that were being
pushed into the criminal justice system for their choice to use marijuana.

What is your current
role at the ACLU?

I am the Criminal Justice Director which is kind of a vague
title in that my work is specifically focused on what we refer to as the front-end
of the criminal justice system. So my job is to look for opportunities to
divert people away from getting involved in the criminal justice system at all.
Obviously legalizing marijuana so that certain marijuana-related activities is
no longer a crime is one thing to look at. Decriminalizing drug use more
broadly and looking at other controlled substances that could be decriminalized
or otherwise diverted out of the criminal justice system is the kind of work
that I am focused on.

What is your greatest
achievement for the cannabis cause?

Having the opportunity to lead the drafting of—and guide—the
campaign for passage of the Initiative 502 was the largest achievement I can
point to. It was truly and honor because it was really the achievement of many,
many people and I just happened to be one of the people in a leadership role in
coordinating the efforts of literally thousands of Washingtonians who have been
working on this issue for decades.

How has cannabis
benefited your life?

I would say that cannabis has shown me two things, it has
helped me recognize very clearly that as human beings, it’s a natural part of
our lives that we seek out substances that give us pleasure and intoxication,
and when pursued to reasonable levels is a very pleasurable experience for
human beings. Learning about cannabis and having experienced cannabis has shown
me that the substance that I grew up with as being the acceptable intoxicant,
alcohol is probably not the best choice for people. I think that sort of opened
my eyes more broadly to reconsidering whether or not our drug policy was doing
more harm to our communities than the drugs themselves.

Who do you look up to
and who do you admire?

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You know, I would have to say Kathleen Taylor, who is the
Executive Director of the ACLU of Washington. She is the one who gave me the
opportunity to do policy work around cannabis, but even more than that it was a
big risk for the ALCU of Washington to take on a ballot initiative campaign and
especially one that nobody thought was going to pass. Also in her day to day
interaction, she is just someone who demonstrates leadership and is focused on
how we can make life better for other people. Its not enough to talk about what
needs to be changed, but lets get out there and do something concrete about it,
so I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to work under her leadership.