“It’s
really
very
simple,
we
have
to
think
of
mental
health
and
addiction
as
health
issues.”
The former school principal and sitting governor of Wisconsin, Tony Evers, chats it up with Joe Schrank and talks college fight songs, student mental health, and why cannabis legalization is a fiscal and moral imperative.
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Governor Tony Evers has spent most of his career in education. He was an undergrad and grad student at the fabled University of Wisconsin campus in Madison, ultimately earning a Ph.D. He spent years as a science teacher, then a principal. The Governor is soft-spoken and kindly, he has an avuncular quality that comes off for what is a genuine concern. Talking to him is like talking to your favorite college professor or chatting with a neighbor while walking your dog in the park. Many might be surprised to learn that as a high school principal he hung out at “smokers corner” because he saw the value in the informal relationships with young people. The governor was kind enough to give me 10 minutes, then graciously went for 20.
Joe Schrank: Governor, I want to thank you for your time. I wanted to start by saying that we all know “Tribute to Troy” leading the USC Trojans is the greatest fight song in college sports, but a very close second is “On Wisconsin”.
Tony Evers: Well, I imagine that debatable, but we have other things to discuss.
JS: Fair enough. You started your career as a teacher and a principal, which scares me but usually when I was sent to the principal, it was to see a nun. You made mental health a priority for your students, can you tell us a bit about that?
TE: Yes, absolutely. You should know, I have never worn a habit so, you’re safe. I was a science teacher and a principal, also the state superintendent of schools. Back in the good old days, mental health was really hidden. As an educator, I always felt it was important to develop relationships with young people. It really helped to hear why they were succeeding or not. It’s much more out in the open now but it’s critical to form relationships with young people in our lives so they trust the adults in theirs.
JS: That’s kind of amazing that you were able to do that as a principal.
TE: Yes, when I was a principal, I spent every noon at “smokers corner”, it was a good way to talk to students, I was also a three-pack-a-day smoker in those days.
JS: Governor, you made national news’s when you commented on the revenue Wisconsin was losing because people were going to Illinois to access legal cannabis. Your voters are clear but you’re getting blocked by Republicans at the statehouse. Can you comment on that?
TE: We will continue to try to legalize marijuana. We have legal states that surround us, leaving the state to buy what they need, paying the taxes to other states. Just financially, it’s ridiculous. The Republicans have drawn a line in the sand and it’s difficult to erase that line.
JS: When republicans crow about individual freedom and government out of people’s lives, and how government shouldn’t be able to tell an individual what to do, there is nothing in the constitution about what a person can or can not put into their own body, so how do you think they rationalize keeping cannabis illegal?
TE: That’s a good question. 83% of Wisconsinites support medical cannabis and 60% support recreational. I think it’s a hangover, which is a bad choice of terms, but it’s a hangover from the tough-on-crime era, and frankly, that’s how we have the criminal justice system we have now. Frankly, we need to move away from that, it’s time to make a change. Unfortunately, having the right answer doesn’t mean it can become policy.
JS: One of the things we have discovered in California is that people who hold a medicinal cannabis card report drinking less or significantly less. According to USA Today, 9 of the Top 20 “drunkest cities in America” are in Wisconsin. Did the possibility of people drinking less factor into the calculus of your thinking?
TE: Actually, I would say the issue of incarceration and different treatments of different people was the major factor. This is more in the realm of needing an equitable society in Wisconsin. Look at crack cocaine, where people ended up in prison for years while people who used powder cocaine received nothing. That’s just wrong. More than anything, that was my thinking.
JS: If you were able to wave a wand and draft legislation, would the dispensing licenses go to people of color and those for early incarcerated on non-violent offenses?
TE: Yes, we would create some advantages for people of color and for those economically disadvantaged. We would also use money going into community development programs. This is an issue that deals with criminal justice as well as equity issues.
JS: September is recovery month in America and very few people know it, relative to say, pride month. I have this idea that you could throw out the first pitch at a Brewers game to celebrate everyone in Wisconsin, doing it a day at a time.
TE: We have designated September as recovery month every year I have been in office and we will continue to do that. I’m not sure me throwing out the first pitch is much of a celebration.
JS: I think spirits can move the culture. Redefining the role of women was easier after Billie Jean King beat the pants off of Bobby Riggs. Without Jackie Robinson breaking the color line, the civil rights legislation could have taken 10 more years. Sports could do the same for recovery.
TE: It’s really very simple, we have to think of mental health and addiction as health issues. I think the main objection and the arguments I hear to oppose cannabis legalization is driving safely. That is something we should be concerned about.
JS: I think that’s a legitimate concern, but nobody thinks anyone should drive if they are impaired on anything. I actually think fewer people would drive, impaired or not.
TE: Yes, that would be the simple answer, if you’re impaired don’t drive.
Tony Evers, who initially joined the U.S. workforce as a kid “scraping mold off cheese”, is Wisconsin’s 46th Governor.
Prior to this, Tony ran and won the position of State Superintendent of Public Instruction, serving three consecutive terms. With this role, Ever’s main focus was to strengthen relations with Tribal Nations and the betterment of school funding for students in rural areas and mental health training across the state.
In January of 2019, Evers has been an outspoken supporter of medical marijuana. In February of 2021, Tony Evers proposed the legalization of recreational marijuana in his 2021-2023 biennial budget.