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legalazation of weed. Legalization of Marijuana The use of marijuana as a drug began
in the United States while the country was still in its infancy. ...
Submitted by mongoose051 on November 27, 2006
Category: Social Issues
Words: 3364 | Pages: 14
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Legalization of Marijuana
The use of marijuana as a drug began in the United States while the country was still in its infancy. Cannabis was cultivated and used by some of our founding fathers but its use in this country was criminalized in 1937 with the Marijuana Tax Act. Fast forward to the 1970's and one can see the first steps towards the public acceptance of marijuana use and the attempts to legalize its cultivation and use. In this paper one will see a brief history of marijuana before and after its rise in modern culture along with the methods and effects of marijuana usage. We will also cover the medical benefits, legalities and public opinions regarding the legalization of this drug.
In the United States before 1937, Cannabis was used for industrial, medical and recreational purposes because it was not illegal. Back in those days the use of marijuana was associated mostly with Mexican immigrants and black jazz musicians. There were wild and undocumented tabloid newspaper articles about how people who used marijuana became drug crazed, murderous maniacs and how this scourge on society must be stopped. These articles helped in the passage of the Marijuana Tax Act, which criminalized the possession of marijuana by imposing exorbitant taxes on its possession and use. Since then there have been progressively more restrictive laws passed on not only the use and possession of marijuana but of all drugs. "By 1969, the possession of drugs resulted in penalties that were higher than for virtually all other crimes in many states" (Economics Resource Center, 2005). Over the years we have seen a relaxing of the laws in various states regarding the use of marijuana, especially for medical use. There are many people who actively lobby for the complete legalization of marijuana not only on a state level but a national level as well. This has put many state laws at odds with the laws enacted by the federal government regarding the...
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