Colorado’s booksellers have joined marijuana magazines in protesting a new provision in the state’s new marijuana legislation, which would regulate pot-themed magazines like pornography. Though not restricting their sales, the provision requires these publications to be placed behind the counter in stores where people under 21 are allowed to enter. It was added after parents complained about them being visible to children. Last week, three pot publications—The Daily Doobie, The Hemp Connoisseur and High Times magazine—filed their own lawsuit attempting to block the provision. And now, the American Civil Liberties Union has filed a separate federal lawsuit on behalf of various booksellers across the state. Several landmark marijuana legalization measures were signed into law by Governor John Hickenlooper last week, making Colorado the world’s first legal, taxed and regulated recreational pot market. It’s also the first state to restrict the display of pot magazines, which critics argue is illogical and contrary to the “spirit” of legalizing pot. “Images of other legal drugs alcohol, tobacco, pharmaceuticals—abound in the public sphere, as do magazines that write about and depict their use,” writes RT Carriero in The Daily Doobie. “Relegating High Times (and the Daily Doobie) to the back shelf, therefore, violates the spirit of 64 when Cigar Aficionado and Wine Spectator are perfectly visible at Barnes & Noble.” First Amendment attorney Chris Beall argues that the provision is a breach of rights: “If the legislature is able to restrict the distribution of magazines about marijuana, what else will it choose to restrict?”
