United States: the father of medical cannabis, Dennis Peron, has died

Dennis Peron, a legendary advocate for access to medical cannabis in the United States, has died in San Francisco at the age of 72.

Dennis Peron was a prominent figure in gay culture and the cannabis community underground in San Francisco in the 1970s and 1980s. At the time, dozens of people were dying every day from the AIDS epidemic. Dennis was one of the first to notice the benefits of cannabis on the health of HIV-positive individuals in the late 1980s. Her partner at the time, who used cannabis to relieve his pain, died of AIDS in 1990.

Alongside Mary Jane Rathbun (« Brownie Mary«”) and Dr. Donald Abrams, Dennis helped pass Proposition P, which allowed for the medical use of cannabis in San Francisco, voted on in 1991, and then expanded the movement across California until the passage of Proposition 215 in 1996, the first state law authorizing the medical use of cannabis, approved by 56.1% of voters.

Dennis had a lot of trouble with the police. Not only because he was gay, but also because he was dealing cannabis to the sick, for example in his restaurant. He was actually in prison on the day Harvey Milk was assassinated in 1978. That never stopped him from continuing to fight for what he believed was right.

Two years after Proposition P passed, Dennis opened the San Francisco Cannabis Buyers Club. By 1996, it had more than 10,000 members.

Dennis lived long enough to see two of his causes come to fruition: the legalization of cannabis in California and same-sex marriage. He was thus able to marry his last partner, John Entwistle, who was also a pro-cannabis activist.

Over the past few months, Dennis preferred the peace and quiet of his home. Some people, like Frenchy Cannoli, were able to thank him for what he had done for California—and for him.

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And even though he was critical of Proposition 64—which he believed would prevent a number of small-scale growers and entrepreneurs from entering the market due to excessive taxes and regulations on cannabis—California wouldn’t be where it is today without Dennis.