Mike Tyson wants cannabis legalised to prevent suicides
Former heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson has called on the UK to legalise the use of cannabis, and believes the drug will help the mental health crisis.
Tyson owns a huge weed farm in California, where he sells cannabis products through his label, Tyson Holistic.
He is in the process of constructing a 418-acre weed-themed holiday resort he hopes will be home to a music festival to rival Coachella, as well as the world’s longest lazy river.
He told The Sun: “Well I will tell you, once it is legalised in the UK, you wouldn’t have to worry about all these prescriptions drugs driving everybody nutty and committing suicide and all that stuff. That will stop immediately.
“Definitely half of it will be knocked out once the people from Great Britain get a chance to participate in what we are doing right now; the wonder medicine.” In the UK in 2019, 6,524 people took their own lives.
Men aged 45-49 and women aged 50-54 have the highest suicide rates in England and Wales.
Over 600 deaths of those under the age of 25 were recorded as suicides in England and Wales in 2019 compared to 434 a decade earlier.
Tyson was speaking outside the Mulberry Street Pizzeria in Vegas where a statue of himself was unveiled.
The statue was erected by Resorts World President Scott Sibella and restaurateur Richie Palmer as a tribute to his close friend.
Palmer, owner and founder of Mulberry Street Pizzeria, said: “It’s important because we’ve been friends for 35 years. It was my way to honour him and have a tribute to him because people don’t know what a great, great, great human being he is.
“Generous to a fault. Kind. He will never say no to anyone for a picture. People don’t get that. All they see is the ferociousness, the craziness, the bad moments. “They don’t see what a genuinely wonderful person he is.”
Tyson was truly overwhelmed with the honour and was unaware this week marks 35 years since he became the youngest world champion in history.
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He stated: “I had no idea… I am very humbled right now. I am truly grateful.
The American has plans to get back in the boxing ring for another exhibition match, after sharing the ring with Roy Jones Jr last year.
He revealed: “I am going to have a return fight in February and we are pretty skeptical about the opponent but it will be a really stimulating opponent.”