Kamil Juszczyk
Ms. Amie Reilly
ENG 101
1/20/2018
Should the Federal government legalize the use of marijuana?
One of the most controversial topics in American society is the legalization of marijuana. Recently, several states have taken steps to legalize the cannabinoid for recreational use. While there are consequences to any drug use, marijuana has medical and recreational benefits that outweigh these repercussions.
Marijuana has many medical applications in society. Marijuana has been used for thousands of years by various civilization. THC which is the main compound in cannabis is known for helping treating many illnesses. Numerous studies have shown that it has medicinal benefits for ALS, Alzheimer’s, anxiety, arthritis, chemotherapy side effects, chronic pain, seizures and many more. In fact, when it comes to cancer, marijuana helps in treatment of chemotherapy by preventing nausea, vomiting and loss of appetite caused by chemotherapy. Medical marijuana has been used in the past and is being used now to fight with chronic pain.
Society has drastically changed since the initial ban of marijuana 81 years ago. America had racist implications behind the ban of weed. According to author Eric Schlosser of the book Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market, the movement behind the prohibition of America was partly due to the increase in Mexican immigration. This is further demonstrated because before the Mexican Revolution of 1910, Americans had used marijuana for health benefits.
Additionally, the ban of marijuana has targeted minority groups more frequently compared to white people. During the 1960’s there was an increased amount of white middle-class individuals who used the drug for recreational use. During the 1960-1970s, there was also a softening of consequences to those who were caught smoking the leafy green. In today’s society, while although African American and Caucasian American usage of marijuana is roughly the same, African Americans are 3.73 times more likely to be arrested.
Due to the racist reasoning behind the ban of marijuana as well as racist attitudes towards the drug today, it puts into question the validity behind governmental claims of marijuana being “unsafe”. While never explicitly stated, minority groups are facing consequences that other Americans aren’t. As the majority of Americans push towards a progressive society, it would make sense that the next step towards equality is the legalization of marijuana. If the government had specific concerns for the drug, then they wouldn’t change the consequences for using it based upon ethnicity.
The legalization of marijuana will aid the economy by providing another source of revenue. When observing states such of Colorado that have allowed the legalization of weed, they have received an abundance of income from tax earnings. Specifically, in 2015 Colorado collected over 135 million in taxes from medical and recreational cannabis. Not only does marijuana increase tax revenue, it also creates jobs for many Americans. According to A RCG Economics and Marijuana Policy Group study on Nevada, there is an upwards of 1.7 billion dollars in labor income! This is especially valuable in this day in age, where America is suffering from a diminishing middle class.
While there are consequences associated with marijuana use these are small when compared to the benefits of cannabis. A major concern to the legalization of weed is the effect it has on memory loss. However, these claims are largely unprecedented. Memory loss can occur through many things such as a number of over the counter and prescription medications such as antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications. Additionally, memory loss isn’t linked to marijuana use. Two such longitudinal twin studies when one twin was exposed to marijuana use both had the same level of IQ. While there are results from studies showing IQ loss from smoking, the people tested were already doing poor in school and there could have been a number of environmental factors.
Marijuana use is also a safer alternative to prolonged alcohol and tobacco use. According to a study displayed by IFLSCIENCE, alcohol has the highest mortality rate while nicotine comes in second. In fact, in 2014 more than 30,000 Americans died from Alcohol usage while there were zero documented deaths for marijuana. Not only is weed safer, it is less addictive. While on average ½ Americans will try the drug during some point in life, only a small amount of people develops a dependency. In a survey done in 1994, the National Institute on Drug Abuse asked upwards of 8,000 people from 15 to 64 about drug use. From this survey, they found that 9% of candidates were addicted to marijuana while 15% of individuals were addicted to alcohol and 32% of people were addicted to nicotine.
Alcohol also causes more brain damage when compared to hemp. According to Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, a new study has shown that people who heavily depend on consuming alcohol often experience “brain shrinkage,” which is a reduced volume of gray and white matter. On the other hand, there is no proof that marijuana affects brain structure. Additionally, a person who drinks heavily damages “hard wiring” of the brain to the point where even when the person is sober, cognitive problems still occur. Furthermore, there are many brain disorders that are caused strictly by chronic alcohol abuse. Research demonstrated by American Addiction Centers shows that “ 80 percent of chronic alcohol users have a thiamine deficiency, and some in this group will progress to a serious brain disorder known as Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome (WKS).” WKS has symptoms such as paralysis of eye nerves, impaired muscle coordination, persistent problems with memory, confusion, and learning ability.
There are an abundance of reasons as to why Marijuana should be legalized. As well as the noting the health benefits, economic value, and the racist implications behind the initial ban the drug, it is a better alternative to other legal substances such as nicotine and alcohol. While cannabis isn’t entirely healthy, it doesn’t have any detrimental effect to human health and therefore should be permitted by law.
Bibliography
"Addiction Research." Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation. https://www.hazeldenbettyford.org/education/bcr/addiction-research.
Andrew, Elise. "New Study Finds Marijuana Safer Than Alcohol Or Tobacco." IFLScience. March 20, 2018. https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/new-study-suggests-risks-marijuana-use-have-been-overestimated/.
Brodwin, Erin. "We Took a Scientific Look at Whether Weed or Alcohol Is Worse for You – and There Appears to Be a Winner." Business Insider. August 28, 2018. https://www.businessinsider.com/alcohol-marijuana-which-worse-health-2017-11#marijuana-appears-to-be-significantly-less-addictive-than-alcohol-3.
Krishna, Mrinalini. "The Economic Benefits of Legalizing Weed." Investopedia. October 22, 2018. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/insights/110916/economic-benefits-legalizing-weed.asp.
"Memory Loss." WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/brain/memory-loss#1.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. "What Are Marijuana's Long-term Effects on the Brain?" NIDA. https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/marijuana/what-are-marijuanas-long-term-effects-brain.
"On This Date: FDR Made Marijuana Illegal 81 Years Ago." Countable. https://www.countable.us/articles/849-date-fdr-made-marijuana-illegal-81-years-ago.
"The War on Marijuana in Black and White." American Civil Liberties Union. https://www.aclu.org/issues/smart-justice/sentencing-reform/war-marijuana-black-and-white.
"Why the U.S. Made Marijuana Illegal." History.com. https://www.history.com/news/why-the-u-s-made-marijuana-illegal.