Mieko Hester Perez
BERLIN, WI: "Marijuana Saved My Son's Life" Mom Mieko Hester Perez will be a special guest at the T.H.C. Expo (Talking Hemp and Cannabis) at the Berlin (WI) Public Library this Saturday, Feb. 6, from 12pm-3pm. Hester Perez's story of how she turned to medical cannabis, legal in her home state of California, after her 10 year-old autistic son's weight plummeted to 48 pounds has been featured on Good Morning America, Fox News and other media. The T.H.C. Expo (Talking Hemp & Cannabis) will be held in the Berlin Public Library, located at 121 W. Park Ave., Berlin.
Not only did cannabis help him eat, but his behavior improved immensely, and she was able to wean him down from 13 to just 3 prescription medications. The T.H.C. Expo will bring the debate over the medical use of cannabis as well as the uses of hemp, a crop once widely cultivated by local farmers, to an area that would like to see legislation covering both medical cannabis and hemp passed this session by state lawmakers.
Joining Mieko Hester Perez at the T.H.C. Expo will be Jacki Rickert, namesake of the Wisconsin Medical Marijuana Act. Also in attendance and scheduled to speak will be Rickert's colleague with the group Is My Medicine Legal YET? (IMMLY.org), Gary Storck. Wisconsin NORML veep Ben Masel, longtime WI free speech and cannabis activist who is also planning a run for the US Senate in 2012 as a Democrat will also be speaking. Masel will focus on the Berlin area's rich past history of hemp farming, the history of hemp growing in the state, as well as AB206, a hemp bill before the Legislature this session. His address is sure to be of interest to local farmers looking for a crop like hemp to help them out of the current downtuen. Author, speaker, attorney and former prosecutor James Gierach of Law Enforcement Agaiinst Prohibition (LEAP) will also speak.
Madison NORML Examiner asked Mieko Hester Perez three questions about her visit to Wisconsin and the T.H.C. Expo in Berlin on Saturday:
1) What do you hope to accomplish with your visit to Wisconsin and the T.H.C. Expo?
I hope to bring our story from California, speaking from a mother's point of view, another credible voice for changing negative public perceptions of MMJ and My unwavering passion & determination to effect changes in State & Federal laws that prohibit the use of MMJ.
2) What do you have to say to Wisconsin parents struggling with a child with autism who would like to be able to treat their child with medical cannabis?
The Compassionate Use of Medical Marijuana saved my son's life. Although Medical Marijuana is not known to be a cure for Autism, It has been proven to facilitate "Life"; it's given my family and many other families across this great nation "HOPE" and immediate results - when there was no hope. I know first hand what he feels like to hear - You're child has a few months to live, I was raised pro life and like many parents - we will do anything to keep our children alive.
The alterative treatment of MMJ was my last choice in finding something that would work, but it was my choice and I choose to be responsible and treat it like any other prescribed medication. I never worried about the backlash, my son was the proof to the world - He's happy, healthy, social and alive! Something we had not seen since he was 16 months and recently Joey started making vocal sounds. Through The Unconventional Foundation for Autism, I vowed to help any parent that reached out to me, "Medical Marijuana saved my son's life".
3) If you had a chance to address the state legislature, what 3 things would you stress in trying to get them to passes the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act this session?
The compelling story of survival & the ongoing progress of my 10 year old son
A voice of comfort, reason & experience for young parents of children living with Autism, ADD, ADHD and Anorexia
A credible voice of outreach for Federal research on the progressive & side effects of MMJ vs. other conventional pharmaceutical medications.
To hear more from Mieko Hester Perez, Jacki Rickert, Gary Storck, Ben Masel, James Gierach and more about Medical Cannabis and Hemp in Wisconsin, make your way to Berlin WI this Saturday for the first T.H.C. Expo. Representatives of organizations including Is My Medicine Legal Yet? (IMMLY), M2j Media, Americans for Safe Access (ASA), Madison and WI chapters of NORML, WI ACLU, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and Wisconsin Veterans for Medical Marijuana Access.will all be on hand to answer questions from the public.
Comments
dr. sharon hirsch comes across as ignorant, stubborn, overly conservative, and narrow minded. i bet she's addicted to food, oh wait, we all are and food keeps us alive and functioning. when dr. hirsch eats a tub of ice cream, she's getting "stoned" as the pleasure sensors in her brain are lighting up like time square. clearly medical marijuana is helping this boy function BETTER despite being "stoned" and despite the negative stigma and connotations that come with being "stoned."
what she said^
or rather what she said v
That's very true marijuana helps. There have been no cases in history of deaths or illness related to marijuana. It does not make you lose coordination or take control over you or thoughts. There is nothing wrong with weed. I give it 5 years and it will be legal.
they don't care. medicinal marijuana users will remain criminals, and that's the end of it. just like literati would be criminals in certain ancient civilizations.
Great article, its stories like this that make me question the whole "war on drugs". marijuana was first legalized because when it first came to America the Mexicans were using it, and they just wanted a reason to be able to throw them in jail. Now we need to re-evaluate marijuana as a whole, and realize its safer than alcohol and tobacco, and actually has positive side effects.
If your gonna come one here and say marijuana makes you stupid, or turns you to other drugs would be totally irrational. Not calling anyone out but people usually bring that up, without stating an intelligent argument.
Carl Sagan, the famous scientist, used marijuana recreationally for years. He said it gave him an appreciation for art that he previously didn't have.
The only thing that should be afraid of legalized marijuana is bags or OREO cookies.
i am so glad that this issue is being brought up. pharmacies have been shoving who knows what in to pills and giving them away to doctors to try on paitients for years. why is a plant that has no side effects except the munchies and giggles. illegal its damn ridiculous. i have been smoking pot for 17 years(chronic back pain) and am a well functioning tax paying citizen. legalize it.
who cares if he's stoned?
better than him being a danger to himself.
I would think you'd need to be carefull with drugs and mental illness like autism.
and the doctors are probably right there is no proven medical effect on autism.
but if it imrpoves the kids quality of life who're they to judge?
I think on a case by case basis it could be very helpfull for a lot of stuff
even if there's no direct medicinal benefit
sort of like herbal tea or whatever
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