9781422272671

COVID-19 DRONES AND SURVEILLANCE ENTERTAINMENT AND VIDEO GAMES LEGALIZING MARIJUANA MEDIA BIAS

REPARATIONS FOR SLAVERY CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM EDUCATION GUN CONTROL HEALTH CARE IMMIGRATION JOBS AND ECONOMY MENTAL HEALTH POVERTY AND WELFARE PRIVACY AND SOCIAL MEDIA RACE RELATIONS RELIGIOUS FREEDOM THE ENVIRONMENT GENDER EQUALITY

ASHLEY NICOLE

PH I L ADELPH I A | MI AMI

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contents

Chapter 1: Introduction to Marijuana Legalization .................... 7 Chapter 2: Would Legalization Be Detrimental to Public Health? ..................................................... 27 Chapter 3: Is Marijuana a “Gateway Drug”? . ............................. 49 Chapter 4: Should Americans Be Allowed to Grow Their Own Marijuana? ................................ 65 Chapter 5: Will Legalization Result in More Crime or Less Crime? ...................................... 83 Series Glossary of Key Terms ................................................... 100 Organizations to Contact . ....................................................... 101 Further Reading . ..................................................................... 102 Internet Resources . ................................................................. 103 Chapter Notes .......................................................................... 104 Index . ...................................................................................... 108 Author’s Biography and Credits . ............................................. 112 K E Y I C O N S T O L O O K F O R : Words to Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will increase the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more! Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there. Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis. Series Glossary of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book glossary contains terminology used throughout this series. Words found here increase the reader’s ability to read and comprehend higher-level books and articles in this field.

WORDS TO UNDERSTAND

cultivation— the process of growing or raising a plant-based crop, such as cannabis. hemp— a strain of cannabis similar to marijuana, but without the psychoactive compound THC. It is grown for fiber to be used in paper, rope, and strong fabrics. misdemeanor— a criminal act in which an individual may be punished by up to one year in jail, fines, and other smaller penalties. psychosis— a mental disorder in which one’s thoughts and emotions are severely impaired. Psychosis typically results in loss of contact with reality. THC— short for “tetrahydrocannabinol.” It is the psychoactive component of marijuana responsible for mind-altering effects.

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CHAPTER

INTRODUCTION TO MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION

Marijuana is an herbal drug made of leaves and flowers from the plant Cannabis sativa . Some people may refer to marijuana by its nicknames, which include “pot,” “weed,” or “grass.” Cannabis is dioecious, meaning it comes as separate male and female plants. The active ingredient in marijuana, which produces the drug’s psychoactive effects, is

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known as tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC . This compound is found in all parts of the plant, but the most concentrated form is found in resin from the flowering female plant. Although federal laws make recreational use of marijuana illegal in the United States, in recent years the drug has become more socially acceptable. Despite the federal prohibitions, dozens of states have passed laws allowing the drug to be used to treat certain health conditions. A few, such as Colorado and Washington, have even legalized the recreational sale and use of marijuana. Marijuana could possibly become a completely legal substance, similar to alcohol and tobacco, at some time in the future, although a heated debate rages over the benefits to society of legalizing the drug.

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THE HISTORY OF MARIJUANA Marijuana has a long history of use by humans for religious, medical, and recreational purposes. In the ancient civilizations of China and the Indus River Valley, the cannabis plant was cultivated as long as 12,000 years ago and used as part of religious rituals. The first written record of marijuana’s use for medicinal purposes dates to around 4000 bce in China. In India, the ancient people used cannabis to treat dysentery and other diseases. The drug was also thought to improve a user’s intellect.

Male cannabis plants are taller and thinner and have flower-like pods which contain the fertilizing, pollen-generating anthers. The female plant is darker and shorter and has short hairs protruding at the end of the bracteole pods.

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Contemporary Issues: Legalizing Marijuana

By around 500 bce, ancient cultures throughout Asia relied on cannabis as an herbal medicine. Herodotus, an ancient Greek historian who lived in the fifth century bce, wrote about a group of Persian nomads who smoked cannabis seeds and flowers to experience a relaxing “high.” Use of marijuana soon spread to the ancient Greeks and Romans, who used the drug for veterinary medicine when they needed to treat their horses for injuries. Of course, humans also used marijuana. Roman medical texts dating back to 70 ce even discussed cannabis as a cure for earaches, arthritis, and other medical ailments. From the Greek and Roman empires, cannabis use would spread throughout Europe and North Africa. The use of marijuana as a recreational drug grew after the spread of the Islamic religion in the seventh century ce. The Islamic holy book, the Qur’an, forbade Muslims from drinking alcohol but did not prohibit them from smoking cannabis. A purified form of the drug known as “hashish,” which was smoked with a pipe, was introduced in the lands that the Muslims conquered and ruled throughout the Middle East, Central Asia, North Africa, and Eastern Europe between 650 and 1500 ce. During Medieval times, the Vikings of Northern Europe and Germanic people of Central Europe used cannabis to relieve pain during childbirth as well as to treat toothaches. “For the most part, it was widely used for medicine and spiritual purposes,” explains Barney Warf, a professor at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. 1

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Introduction to Marijuana Legalization

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

A description of Cannabis sativa appears in the landmark work on herbal plants by Leonhart Fuchs, De historia stirpium commentarii insignes (“Notable Commentaries on the History of Plants”), published in Germany in 1542.

throughout colonial America, hemp could be considered legal tender just like tobacco and other commodities. During the 1850s, marijuana began to be prescribed as a treatment for some illnesses because it offered a simple way to increase the user’s appetite, reduce pain, and relieve nausea. Between 1836 and 1840, a French doctor named Jacques-Joseph Moreau wrote about the psychological effects associated with marijuana use. Studies of the effects of marijuana became incredibly important as the medical community looked for new ways to treat ailments using newly established methods of research.

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Introduction to Marijuana Legalization

Later on, scientists would discover that THC had a variety of medicinal properties. In fact, they discovered that THC could encourage people to become hungry and reduce nausea, which could be important features for patients living with cancer and other long-term health ailments. Marijuana use comes with a series of side effects, each of which may be partially considered for the controversial nature regarding its legal status. Mental and physical side effects range from heightened euphoria to increased appetite. This is often described as a pleasant “high” feeling, but some people experience side effects like fear and anxiety. While many people do not consider these side effects to be serious, it is important to acknowledge that side effects can be detrimental to an individual’s physical and mental well-being—even if they use cannabis in a medical setting or under the guidance of a professional. THE RISE OF RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA IN AMERICA In the 1900s, Americans realized that marijuana could be used for recreational purposes. Immigrants who traveled from Mexico to the United States during the Mexican Revolution allegedly inspired many Americans to smoke marijuana recreationally. The fear that came with Mexican immigration inspired some people to fear the substance and push for it to become illegal. During the Great Depression, unemployment and social issues contributed to a fear and social stigma associated with marijuana. By 1931, twenty-nine states had already

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Contemporary Issues: Legalizing Marijuana

outlawed the use of cannabis. It was six years later that federal law criminalized marijuana throughout the nation through the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. One day after the law passed, law enforcement made the first marijuana- related arrest. The 1936 film Reefer Madness depicted marijuana use as a gateway to violence, psychosis , and suicide. It was a propaganda film used to demonstrate the perils of marijuana addiction. It was financed by a church group and probably helped to influence passage of the Marijuana Tax Act. (The film had a resurgence in popularity decades later, when marijuana use was on the rise among young people, who found its depiction of marijuana-crazed people to be humorous.)

Scan here to watch a trailer for the 1936 film Reefer Madness.

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Introduction to Marijuana Legalization

Marijuana gained prominence again throughout the 1960s, as many young people experimented with the drug, which they considered to be harmless. Marijuana became associated with the Beat generation, hippies, youthful students, anti-war activists, and others living alternative lifestyles. In 1970, President Richard Nixon signed into the law the Controlled Substances Act. This would repeal the previous Marijuana Tax Act. It classified drugs on five different

CBD PRODUCTS

In recent years, some companies have promoted CBD, or cannabidiol, as a product that could provide some health benefits. CBD is a non-psychoactive compound found in cannabis plants that many people believe offers some health benefits. The benefits of CBD may include relief from depression and anxiety. However, unlike marijuana, CBD does not produce any sort of euphoric feelings, or “high.” Additionally, CBD does not exhibit any potential for abuse or dependence. Although CBD can be derived from marijuana, the compound is also found in the hemp plant, which is related to marijuana. Since passage of the 2018 Farm Act, hemp has not been a federally regulated substance, making it a good source for legal CBD. A variety of

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Contemporary Issues: Legalizing Marijuana