Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1996. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
San Francisco Chronicle - The Voice of the West, 901 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94119 - Tuesday, August 6, 1996 - Page A13
Maitland Zane, Chronicle Staff Writer
Long before he founded the Cannabis Buyers' Club, which was raided by state narcotics officers Sunday, Peron was an advocate for the legalization of marijuana. In the mid-1970s, he ran the Big Top pot supermarket on Castro Street, which offered customers sample merchandise to taste, regular hours and a mellow environment -- until it became too blatant for police to ignore. Peron was shot in the leg when police raided the operation in 1977.
Peron, 50, a Bronx-born Viet nam veteran, called the marijuana emporium "a service to the community." His claim that he was not in business for the money was backed up at the time by a community activist named Harvey Milk, then running for supervisor: "Dennis is the opposite of a profiteer," Milk said. "I've seen his money and energy going back to the community."
Peron ran unsuccessfully for the Board of Supervisors in 1989 on a platform calling for the legalization of marijuana. The AIDS plague, especially the death of his lover, Jonathan West, in 1990, turned him into a crusader for medical marijuana.
"I've lost at least 200 friends," Peron said recently. "Toward the end of his short life Jonathan's body was covered with KS lesions. But he said marijuana really helped him. It gave him dignity; he could even laugh sometimes. When he died at age 29, I decided to dedicate myself to helping all people who were suffering and dying of HIV."
The Cannabis Buyers' Club opened for business in 1994, selling marijuana to people with AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma or other painful ailments. Local law enforcement authorities took their cue from sympathetic city officials and looked the other way.
Peron said membership has tripled to 12,000 since the club opened. The club, which started out in a loft at Church and Market streets, recently moved to a four- story building on Market near Polk.
Inside, there is a big-screen TV, and a big fern bar with couches and easy chairs for patrons to socialize, as well as a sales counter, a snack bar, a performance space for musicians, and a gift shop with pipes, pro-pot T-shirts and Brownie Mary cookbooks.
Prices range as high as $80 for an eighth of an ounce of top-grade sinsemilla. The pot comes sealed in baggies with a "Rx" sticker saying "Not for Resale."
Peron works in an office with a poster of his hero, Milk, on the wall and -- until Sunday's raid -- a dozen pot plants on his desk.
The club pays him a salary, as it does for several other staff members, but Peron says he still lives "very simply" in a five-member commune.
Peron led the Northern California campaign that collected 763,000 signatures to put Proposition 215, which would legalize marijuana for medical use, on the November ballot.
Peron said Sunday's raid, which happened while he was vacationing in Canada, won't deter his efforts to legalize pot for medicinal purposes:
"Customers come in who are upset and nauseous, and they leave here with a smile on their faces. If they weren't buying here, they'd be getting robbed and beaten up in Dolores Park. Here, we're helping them stay alive."
960806
SC960805
Copyright © 1996 - San Francisco Chronicle Press. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the San Francisco Chronicle, Permissions Desk, 901 Mission Street, San Franciso, CA 94103. You may also send a fax to (415) 495-3843, or an email message to chronperm@sfgate.com. http://www.sfgate.com.
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Elton John AIDS Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, Pacific Life Foundation and donations from users like you.
Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 1996. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1980, 1996. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .