Cannabis Expo Organizers Hope To Change Perception

<p>Thousands of people will be descending on to the state fairgrounds this weekend with one thing on their minds. </p>

Friday, June 1st 2018, 6:47 pm

By: Aaron Brilbeck

Cannabis Expo Organizers Hope To Change Perception

Thousands of people will be descending on to the state fairgrounds this weekend with one thing on their minds. Pot. It's the Mid-America Medical Cannabis Conference and Expo.

There's a reason it's being held in Oklahoma. Oklahoma is a very conservative, red state looking at passing medical marijuana. Backers believe if they can make it here, they can make it anywhere.

Jayson Emo is a self-proclaimed pot-head who's love for the ganja led him to start a multi-million dollar business. He developed the process of extracting cannabis oil from marijuana plants using butane.

Emo is also a native Okie who is back home trying to get State Question 788 legalizing medical marijuana passed this month. He isn't worried that the legislature hasn't passed any measures regulating it yet.

"You know that's really not an uncommon so the states to find themselves in. I work in multiple cannabis states and every state that comes around they don't seem to have a grip on it. But it's one of those learn as you go things,” said Emo. "The cool thing is we've done this in places like Colorado and Nevada and Washington. We've done them with great success. There's no reason to reinvent the wheel here."

Opponents of the medical marijuana proposal say the wording is vague and that is really isn't about treating peoples’ ailments.

"It is a business and it is just there to make money and we obviously saw that with tobacco, we've seen that with opioids and now we're going to see this with marijuana,” said August Rivera of the group Oklahomans Against 788.

Emo says he does care about treating the sick, but makes no bones about medical marijuana being a slippery slope leading to recreational pot.

"Damn straight. It is a slippery slope.” Emo said, “Because here’s what’s gonna [sic] happen. We're going to pass medical marijuana in Oklahoma. The sky is not going to fall. The legislators and the people in officer are gonna [sic] go, we make how much money off this if it was recreational? And then you'll have recreational."

State Question 788 will be on the June 26 primary election ballot.