These Ottawa Grade 12 students want frank talk about pot

Some Ottawa high school students say they'd welcome franker conversations about marijuana, now that the drug has been legalized.

CBC News recently visited a class of Grade 12 students at Lisgar Collegiate Institute to survey their attitudes on cannabis.

It quickly became clear that students have opinions as diverse as the general population. 

In a show of hands, however, LCI students agreed on one thing — legalization has more going for it than against it, from the chance to have access to safer drugs to just being able to finally talk openly about cannabis.

Here's what they said. Some comments have been edited for length and clarity.

Destiny McIntosh

​It encourages safer use of marijuana, because the fact is kids smoke weed and adults smoke weed and there's fentanyl everywhere.

So, like, knowing you're getting it from a good safe place is ideal rather than buying something off the street and not necessarily knowing what's in it.

Robyn Fyfe

It's hard to go up to a teenager and say, 'Can I give you some advice on how to safely use this illegal substance'?

But this legalization, I feel like it's going to open the conversation more and mean that people, educators and parents are going to feel safer and freer to discuss this. And that's going to lead to more of an honest conversation.

Hayden Chandler

Do you think that, realistically, anything since Oct. 17 has really changed with the availability of it to teenagers? It's just as easy [to get] now as it was then.

The problem is it's been such a taboo for so long. But I think it is important for parents to talk about it now.

Emmanuel Massela

If it's not talked about, your kids, they'll find it out from someone else, [like] their friends, about how cool it is or about how they have to try it.

Maybe they'll be easily influenced, not hearing the effects of it.

But [parents] can only stop that from happening if they talk about it, have a conversation about it at the dinner table or wherever they have their conversations.

Fiona Murray

With parents, I think smoking should be discussed like drinking. Like, we're going to parties. We're doing it anyway. And parents should address it like they do with [alcohol] — like, it's all good in moderation.

Alice Cocard

I believe it's after 24, 25, when the brain stops completely developing. And we know cannabis can get in the way of that.

People are going to find it regardless, but I feel like if you're the government, you should be using science and evidence when you're making the rules.