Parents, picture this: your kid is opening a mostly green bag of candy. Nothing unusual, especially for this time of year, so you probably think nothing of it. Then, they take out a lollipop, and you take a second look: It’s shaped like a marijuana leaf. How would you react?
City leaders, anti-drug activists and parents across the country aren’t sweet on this new candy. Instead, they view it as something that trivializes drug use even though the sour-apple flavored treats contain only legal substances.
With product names, such as “Pothead Ring Pots,” “Pothead Sour Gummy Candy,” and “Pothead Lollipops,” the packages contain the word "Legalize" and a joint-smoking, peace sign-waving user on the front, according to a Forbes article.
The president of the Philadelphia supply company that distributes these products told the magazine the candies have been on the market for six to nine months, are in 1,000 stores around the country, and that they promote the legalization of marijuana.
"It's the whole idea that it promotes drugs and the idea that, here, you'll look cool if you use this -- which is what gets these kids in trouble in the very first place,” Jodie Altman, who works for a a treatment center for drug- and alcohol-addicted youth, told Forbes.
In Buffalo, one outraged parent was apparently able to get the product pulled from many local stores.