A group of New Yorkers celebrated in the streets after the recreational use of marijuana was legalized in the state last week.
In a YouTube video uploaded on the SideTalk channel, it shows a group of New Yorkers partying on the street, cheering one another as they take hits from their bongs.
A man can be seen filled his bong up with Hennesy, chugging all of it after taking a hit, while another person says: “You know, we couldn’t do this without Cuomo. SIKE!” He then jumped to the ground and did 10 push-ups while smoking his weed.
On March 31, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the bill to legalize the recreational use of Marijuana, and is the 16th state in the country to do so.
Cuomo said the legalization of marijuana was one of his top priorities this year.
Cuomo added that the reform will address and balance the social equity, safety, and economic impacts of cannabis.
“This is a historic day in New York, one that rights the wrongs of the past by putting an end to harsh prison sentences, embraces an industry that will grow the Empire State’s economy, and prioritizes marginalized communities so those that have suffered the most will be the first to reap the benefits,” Cuomo said.
According to the legislation, people in New York cannot have up to three ounces of weed or 24g of concentrated forms of the drug (oils).
New Yorkers will be able to smoke cannabis anywhere as long as smoking tobacco is allowed, except in schools, workplaces, or inside a vehicle.
In addition, the legislation will also remove the criminal records of people who have previously been charged with weed-related offenses.
New York Senator Liz Kruger said in a press release on March 27 that she hopes the legislation will end the ‘racially disparate enforcement of marijuana prohibition that has taken such a toll on communities of color across the state, and to use the economic windfall of legalization to help heal and repair those same communities’.