To the Editor:

In 1994, the CEOs of the leading tobacco companies testified to Congress on whether or not nicotine was addictive. The CEOs of Philip Morris, R.J. Reynolds, U.S. Tobacco, Lorillard Tobacco, Liggett Group, Brown and Williamson Tobacco, and American Tobacco were all unanimous in their declaration that “no, nicotine is not addictive.” Anyone watching the replay of this event today, 28 years later, would likely view it as one of the most stunning attempts at public deception with devastating consequences on future public health.

A more recent example of organized public deception was Purdue Pharma’s deliberate suppression of evidence of OxyContin’s powerful addictive properties which led to the opioid crisis. Purdue Pharma’s President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Friedman and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Paul D. Goldenheim pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor “misbranding” charge and the executives paid a combined $634.5 million in fines.

Today, Princeton is facing its own glaring example of a breach of public trust with the potential for tragic consequences.

The Princeton Cannabis Task Force (CTF) includes the former president of New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association (NJCIA) and the former chief medical officer of 4Front Holdings. Do people fully grasp that these members of the CTF and its Council liaisons are advocating to possibly put retail pot shops within 200 feet of schools? The NJCIA’s mission is to drive growth for the cannabis industry, and 4Front Holdings is a publicly traded cannabis retail and brand development company. Do residents really believe the cannabis industry is making decisions with our best interests in mind? Do residents really want the cannabis lobbyists deciding whether retail pot shops should be in our town?

I urge residents to remember the patterns that emerged in the tobacco and opioid examples where executives suppressed evidence of the harmful effects of their products. We now know that the use of cigarettes is responsible for some 480,000 deaths each year. As this fact has seeped into mainstream knowledge and cigarette sales, especially among newer users, continue to sharply decline, big tobacco giants are looking to market a new product: marijuana. The CTF’s Council liaisons would like you to believe they are pushing for pot shops within 200 feet of schools for social justice reasons. Nowhere in big tobacco or 4Front Holdings’ mission statement will you see reference to social justice goals. No parent of any race wants more hazards introduced into their children’s environment. If the CTF Council liaisons want to make a positive impact on social justice, why not establish programs that lift people up? There is no evidence that more drug use improves any measure of economic, academic, social, career, or political advancement for any race.

Tell Princeton’s Council you don’t support recreational retail cannabis dispensaries in our town and you object to cannabis industry lobbyists participating on the CTF (email addresses at princetonnj.gov), and register to attend the Council public meeting on March 29 at 7 p.m.

Sheila McLaughlin
Walnut Lane