Drug activist draws flak for sending magic mushrooms, coca leaf to B.C. MLAs

A well-known cannabis and drug policy reform activist says he sentsamples of illegal drugs to everymember of the legislative assemblyin British Columbia to show elected officials the benefits of the substances' "medicinal effects."

Dana Larsen, who runs theMedicinalMushroom Dispensary inVancouver's Downtown Eastside, says he mailed all 87 B.C. MLAsonegramof psilocybinmushroomsanda coca leafas "gifts" for the holidays.

Psilocybinisa hallucinogenic compound found in mushrooms.

The drug is prohibited in Canada by the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. Some exemptions exist in B.C. for people who possess and consume drugs, however, it is illegal to traffic psilocybin and other psychedelic drugs without an exemption from Health Canada.

"I wanted to show our elected officials what these things really are," Larsen told Gloria Macarenko, host of CBC's On The Coast. "There's nothing to be afraid of when it comes to a cocaleaf or a mushroom."

The package also included a user guide and a two-page letter calling on MLAs to rethink drug policies.

Larsenhaspreviously made headlinesformailing B.C. Premier Christy Clark a half-ounce of marijuana back in 2014 to "help resolve a B.C. teachers' strike."

On The Coast11:13Why Dana Larsen mailed magic mushrooms and coca leaves to B.C. MLAs

Dana Larsen, founder of The Coca Leaf Cafe and The Medicinal Mushroom Dispensary, explains why he mailed every B.C. MLA one gram of magic mushrooms and a coca leaf for Christmas.

He says his recent "holiday gifts" toMLAsarein response to raids executedby Vancouver Police Department onhis three psilocybin storesin November.

"I was also held in police custody for seven hours and then I was released with no chargesand I reopened our storethe very next day," he said.

The dispensary owner makes no attempt to hide the federally-controlled substance it offers.

"If we look back to the legalization of cannabis, it took exactly this kind of civil disobedience to get these laws changed," he added."I hope in five or 10 years when we finally get these laws changed, elected officials will also accept the legalization of psychedelic mushrooms."

Larsen draws criticism from MLAs

A letter enclosedin the package askedMLAs to discourage raids at mushroom dispensaries likehis and invited themto visit his stores.

Surrey South MLA Elenore Sturko, B.C. United critic for mental health, addiction, recovery and education,called Larsen's move "inconsiderate."

"I am a person who lives in sobriety and maybe there are members who are former substance users and to get these gifts in their mail is really an inconsiderate act," she toldCBC's On The Coast.

On The Coast13:00B.C. United MLA calls illegal-drug gift inconsiderate for people like her who had substance use issue

Elenore Sturko, the B.C. United MLA for South Surrey and a former spokesperson for the Surrey RCMP, says drug activist Dana Larsen was inconsiderate when he mailed magic mushrooms and coca leaves to every MLA, including people like her who had a substance use issue and are in sobriety.

Sturko said she and other B.C. United MLAs are turning the drugs over to police.

"It frustrates me and angers me that he is putting the public at risk and then considers himself a hero," she said.

Other elected officials have also spoken out against the packages, includingB.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad.

"Premier Eby's NDP have been clear: they want to 'de-stigmatize'the use of hard drugs which kill people, ruin lives, and destroy our communities," Rustad said in a statement to CBC News. "This is the result of their policies and approach."

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworthalso condemnedLarsen'sactions.

"The irresponsible act of sending illegal substances to MLA offices in British Columbia is reprehensible and wrong," Farnworth said. "Government has alerted law enforcement. They have provided instructions to MLA offices on the appropriate actions to take."