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During the sixteenth century, European explorers and colonists would introduce the Cannabis sativa plant to the Americas. It was not used in the New World as a drug, however. Spaniards were the first in the Western Hemisphere to cultivate a variety of Cannabis sativa known as hemp , which could be used to create rope, cloth, and other useful products. In the 1540s, the Spanish started hemp farms in Chile. In North America, British colonists began growing hemp during the 1600s, because the crop grew better in Virginia than in England. In fact, hemp became so essential to the United States that the Virginia Assembly passed legislation in 1619 requiring all farmers to grow the plants. Other early British colonies, including Massachusetts and Connecticut, passed similar laws. In the barter system that was often used

“The illegality of cannabis is outrageous, an impediment to full utilization of a drug which helps produce the serenity and insight, sensitivity, and fellowship so desperately needed in this increasingly mad and dangerous world.” 2

—Carl Sagan, scientist

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Contemporary Issues: Legalizing Marijuana