Some students are buzzed about a new group on campus, which is the second of its kind in Bakersfield. The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) meets at 7 p.m. every Tuesday in the Bakersfield College Fireside Room and every third Thursday at Beale Library downtown.

Since 1970, NORML has led successful efforts to decriminalize minor marijuana offenses in 11 states and significantly lower marijuana penalties in all others.

The group’s goal is to decriminalize recreational use of marijuana and legalize use for medicinal purposes and legalize the use of industrial hemp.

Hemp is a fiber that contains no THC, the active chemical that causes intoxication in marijuana. Hemp can be used in the manufacturing of clothing, rope, paper and food. It can save thousands of trees lost every year. According to the Hemp Industries Association, “Hemp seed is far more nutritious than even soybean, contains more essential fatty acids than any other source, is second only to soybeans in complete protein (but is more digestible by humans), is high in B-vitamins and is 35 percent dietary fiber. Hemp seed is not psychoactive and cannot be used as a drug.

Matthew Angel, vice president of NORML at BC, said that Doug McAfee, president of Bakersfield NORML, petitioned students and got 100 signatures in four hours. At the first club meeting, a secretary was elected and ideas for fund-raisers were gathered.

The Rev. William Hoss, a member of Bakersield NORML, attended the meeting and said, “I suffer from chronic cirrhosis, and my wife suffers from Addison’s disease. Without legal medicinal marijuana, we’d be forced to be slaves to synthetic manmade drugs, such as Vicodin, for pain relief. People are afraid to put themselves up front because President Bush has started a war against medicinal marijuana.”

BC NORML will possibly be making t-shirts and holding rummage sales to raise funds for supplies and for making fliers to help push awareness of the cause.