Marijuana legalization advocate Mikel Weisser died about six months before Arizona voters made his dream come true. His wife said the late Golden Valley resident and head of Arizona’s National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) since 2015 is beaming down from heaven, gleeful that marijuana will be legal in Arizona by virtue of passage of Prop. 207.
“Mikel’s truest wish was for marijuana to be legalized so that people didn’t have to go to jail,” Beth Weisser said, choking back tears. “That’s exactly what Mikel was working for. He was working for people to feel normal about using marijuana, about appreciating cannabis as a healing plant and that it’s so much safer for our communities that we accept it and regulate it, instead of so many people self-medicating with alcohol and other illicit drugs.”
Many vilified Weisser for his marijuana activism, but Beth, just re-elected to the Kingman Unified School District Governing Board, said it was his passion in life.
“Mikel literally gave his life to legalize marijuana in Arizona. He had warning signs that he was going to have a heart attack, but he didn’t pay attention to it. He was in denial because he said he didn’t want anything to stop him from going to work,” Beth said. “He died the night before he was to travel to the southern part of the state to tell more people why they needed to legalize marijuana.”
NORML executives eulogized Weisser after he died of a heart attack in May.
“The people of Arizona are better off because of him and the ripples of hope he projected over his years of activism will continue to move throughout the world,” said NORML Political Director Justin Strekal.
“There is a massive and palpable void left in Mikel’s absence that is felt across the entire movement,” said NORML Legal Committee member Tom Dean. “There will never be another Mikel Weisser.”
Dave Hawkins
