Bee Opinionated: 9/11 anniversary + United Farmworkers fight against Newsom’s ambitions

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Hello again from Robin Epley with The Bee Editorial Board. First and foremost, I want to recognize today as the 21st anniversary of 9/11.

War breaks our veterans. Psychedelic drugs can ease their pain, yet they remain illegal.

So reads the headline for my colleague Yousef Baig’s stunning work on psychedelics and their ability to help veterans recovering from trauma.

Opinion

His piece focuses on Jose Martinez, a 34-year-old Army veteran, Compton native and triple amputee, who stepped on a improvised explosive device in Kandahar, Afghanistan in 2012.

“The blast — strong enough to destroy a vehicle — put him in a 10-day coma and rendered him a triple amputee barely five months into his deployment,” Baig wrote. Martinez attempted suicide almost immediately after he was released from the hospital.

He credits his turn to psychedelics with saving his life.

A double-blind, placebo-controlled study by the Multidisciplinary Association of Psychedelic Studies found last year that 67% of people who received MDMA-assisted therapy “no longer met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD” just two months after treatment. A 2020 study by Johns Hopkins University found that as few as two doses of psilocybin mushrooms can treat major depression — and about four times more effectively than traditional antidepressants.

“Instead, because of ingrained stigmas, biases and generations of ignorant lawmakers, far too many veterans like Martinez face a difficult choice: break the laws of the country you bled for by using effective but illegal drugs, or follow antiquated rules and one-size-fits-all treatments and risk death. Psilocybin and other hallucinogens are considered Schedule I drugs under the Controlled Substances Act, with state penalties as severe as 1-4 years in prison. Martinez refused to succumb to his trauma and depression and sought out psychedelic drugs.”

“(Psychedelics) allowed me to release mental struggles that I didn’t really know or understand that I had,” Martinez says. “That’s what kept me in my (mental) cellblock, that kept me wanting to be in a comfort zone. Now everyday I want to be uncomfortable and see how worthy I am of living everyday to my fullest.”

Firmar La Legislación

Gov. Gavin Newsom is feeling increased pressure to sign Assembly Bill 2183, a proposal that would make it easier for farmworkers to vote to unionize.

In a statement over Labor Day weekend, President Biden noted that “in the state with the largest population of farmworkers, the least we owe them is an easier path to make a free and fair choice to organize a union.”

Likewise, Nancy Pelosi tweeted that “CA farmworkers provide for our families — but far too many can’t provide for theirs because they are exploited and don’t have a voice on the job. We can mend this injustice by expanding workers’ rights. I urge the governor to sign #AB2183 for the farmworkers and For The Children.”

So is Newsom feeling the pressure? Our editorial board hopes so.

Newsom shouldn’t sign the bill because it potentially hurt his presidential chances when tries to fundraise with wealthy donors. And he shouldn’t sign because Biden wants him to, either.

“There’s really only one reason he should sign it,” we wrote, “and that’s because it’s the right thing to do. As Biden said, it’s the least we owe farmworkers.”

High Honors

I also want to take a quick moment just to recognize one of our own: California Opinion Editor Marcos Bretón was recognized this week by the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in its inaugural Luces Hispanas Awards.

The award is given to an “inspiring and ceiling-breaking individual or entity that displayed tenacity against significant odds.” Marcos joined The Bee in 1989 as a news reporter, became a columnist in 2007, and was named McClatchy’s California Opinion Editor last year.

Felicidades, Marcos. We’re so proud of you and are honored to work with you!

Opinion of the Week

“The pandemic has widened the wage gap into a chasm paved over by silence and the status quo.” — From my column on the gender wage gap for women, and especially working moms, who just caught up this week to men’s paychecks for 2021.

Got thoughts? What would you like to see in this newsletter every week? Got a story tip or an opinion to tell the world? Let us know what you think about this email and our work in general by emailing us at any time via opinion@sacbee.com.

Si se puede,

Robin Epley