Last night, there was a strange atmosphere in Conway Hall. The building, tucked away in the corner of a square in Holborn, is named after Moncure Daniel Conway (1832 – 1907). Conway was an anti-slavery advocate who was known for being out-spoken in his support of free thought. The heritage of the building, the legacy of its namesake and the nature of the debate was a potent combination – creating an environment primed for a political show down.
The CISTA (Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol) candidates for London Mayor 2016 had gathered for their party’s hustings. There was an air of friendly camaraderie at first but as the various factions of supporters trickled into the hall the sense of competition grew.
Amongst the smiles, handshakes and Fox’s chocolate biscuits was an acknowledgement that tonight was a pivotal moment for the candidates, their party and the face of cannabis policy reform in the UK. A paradigm shift in attitudes towards cannabis was underway and the stakes had been raised for those advocating for change.
The four pioneers looking to lead this battle for the hearts and minds of Londoners are:
Three of the CISTA mayoral candidates at Conway Hall. R-L: Jay, Louis and Lee.
After powerful opening statements covering their political, spiritual and advocacy backgrounds the candidates were put to the test in a round of Q&A. #CISTAmayor
A key question on the education of children about cannabis from the audience #cista2015 pic.twitter.com/ayLgLj4kPU
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
Q: how do you convince the mum of a kid who smokes weed? #CISTAmayor
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
Lee Harris: we must educate parents so they are not afraid. Kids will experiment and we can't change that. #CISTAmayor
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
CISTA candidate for Vauxhall, Alex Robertson, asks abt how candidates will address qs abt mental health #cistamayor pic.twitter.com/hHHwiggfER
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
Lee Harris: we want to prevent abuse of cannabis and increase access to treatment #cistamayor pic.twitter.com/MzifUkhyMr
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
The candidates all showed that they had different approaches very early on. Housing, employment, taxes, decriminalisation, education and parenting were amongst the topics raised. There were consensuses along the way but it was clear each candidate brought a different set of motivations and goals to the debate.
Candidates united: education and young engagement key to drugs law reform in cannabis #cistamayor
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
A clear and pragmatic approach from candidate @Louis_Amadeus who says we should look to the USA pic.twitter.com/cYulS2J56h
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
Inspiration speech and prayer from our second candidate @killa_kirton, a 22 year old spiritual healer pic.twitter.com/b0jPrecFKx
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
Wonderful speech from our first candidate, 79 year old veteran campaigner, Lee Harris "I'm a peace and love hippy" pic.twitter.com/EzyZrjENnA
— CISTA-UK (@CISTA2015) November 26, 2015
It was refreshing to see such a diverse range of candidates discussing a single issue with such passion, from very different angles.
Cista hustings for #cistamayor A photo posted by VolteFace Magazine (@volteface.me) on
The candidates revealed a complexity to their individual campaigns that is often not attributed to single issue parties. Their passion and charisma was not lost on the crowd, who thronged around the ballot box to cast their vote at the end of the session. Follow the journeys of these mayoral hopefuls over on CISTA.
See all the candidates argue why they should be CISTA’s mayoral candidate in 2016 below.
