WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — A lawmaker on the country’s largest American Indian reservation has introduced a bill to reaffirm the tribe’s stance against legalizing marijuana.
Navajo Nation Council Delegate Edmund Yazzie says legalizing marijuana for medical or recreational use contradicts Navajo values and tradition.
His bill introduced this week comes in response to an announcement last year by the U.S. Department of Justice to allow American Indian tribes to grow and sell marijuana within certain guidelines.
Navajo lawmakers can take action on Yazzie’s bill after a public comment period.
Yazzie has said legalizing marijuana would drive up crime rates and drug addiction on the vast reservation that extends into New Mexico, Utah and Arizona.
Other tribes across the nation are cautiously debating whether to approve marijuana sales and use.
