The Stigma of Marijuana use through Pop Culture
Let’s face it, weed gets a bad rap. The media is to blame, and I don’t mean #fakenews or anything like that, I mean the cultural outputs of our entertainment industry, from Hollywood to Broadway. Marijuana, long the butt of lazy stoner jokes and Hot Cheeto-laden Netflix binges, has reached a new high: in public acceptance and in how we portray it in the media.
ANTI-WEED PROPAGANDA
The most famous piece of anti-weed propaganda created was of course yours truly, Reefer Madness.
Brought to us from the year 1930 and used for a very long time to enable society to talk trash about marijuana. Disinformation about cannabis was perpetuated, and it quickly became attached to negative ideas and messages.
Reefer Madness depicts the story of a couple “living in sin” because they sell marijuana to others, told by a lecturer at an assembly. It builds up to the murder of an innocent woman called Mary, by Ralph (the drug dealer). Ralph and his partner Mae frame Bill, Mary’s boyfriend, into believing he was the murderer because he was under the influence of marijuana. Eventually Ralph goes mad with the continuous use of marijuana and kills another man leading to his arrest and the freedom of Bill. The film ends with the lecturer speaking: “We must work untiringly so that our children are obliged to learn the truth because it is only through knowledge that we can safely protect failing lifts the next tragedy may be that of your daughter or your son or yours or yours or yours!” then the large words TELL YOUR CHILDREN appear on the screen. This clearly shows the mindset society had during this time.
As the years passed the way media portrayed marijuana still took the act as a joke. The stereotype of the hippie stoner was created and the exaggeration of their characteristics were born. Two types of stereotyping occur implicit and explicit. The majority of individuals partake in explicit stereotyping because they do it consciously. They see a person who looks the part and they label/ stigmatize them. The stereotyping that individuals learn come mainly from media. The image of a “stoner” is depicted in the majority of movies and TV shows involving weed: lazy, dumb, unreliable, giddy, criminals. Many individuals believe “stoners” will make your kids become like them.
Here are some examples:
Only eight years apart and we can see the stereotype still stands. With the stereotype of a marijuana user comes the stereotype of what happens when you smoke marijuana. This clip from The Simpsons shows the exaggeration perfectly.
Marijuana is seen as bad, especially since it is illegal. The media paints marijuana as a drug that will inevitably lead to the destruction of lives, instead of as a viable recreational substance with potentially positive health benefits. Popular television shows do not address that the very reason marijuana use ruins lives is its continually unjust criminalization. The marijuana user is seen as a loser, someone who does not have a job, who plays video games all day. The stigma of being a criminal is slowly dying off but as long as the plant is illegal the criminalization behind it will stay.
Modern Take of Today
“If a positive weed-infused future exists in America, it certainly lives on television.”
Media has done a great job at lessening the stigma behind marijuana users. “If a positive weed-infused future exists in America, it certainly lives on television.” But still shows, exhibit an exaggeration of their behaviors. In a Netflix show called Disjointed, cannabis acted as a catalyst for characters stuck in laughing fits, and trippy animations unexpectedly appeared on screen to serve as expired propaganda that marijuana induces hallucinations. Marijuana was simply a background prop that served no substance to Disjointed’s core. This seems to be a consistent theme through movies that involve weed. It is in there but it is not the main focus anymore. Marijuana use, on screen, is recreational thing people do for fun. It is not a serious activity anymore.
As laws change and society brings less attention to the criminalization of marijuana, the stigma will continue to drop. The recognition that marijuana is not bad means the people that use it are not bad either. Media shows successful people smoke weed and continue to be successful. The stereotype of the hippie stoner no longer exists. There are no more exaggerations as in the past due to individuals being educated and speaking to real life people who smoke marijuana. Yes, the stigma is still alive but it is not as strong as it once was.
Normalization of Weed
As society learns more about marijuana and the truth behind its effect, shows and movies are depicting a more realistic view of marijuana and its users. Shows like Discovery Channel’s 2011 Weed Wars, Vice’s 2016 docuseries Weediquette, and CNN’s special Weed documentary, have all had a hand in normalizing cannabis and reconstructing its image for a curious American audience. Campaigns made by weed companies help steer the conversation as well. The word “stoner” is still used but the picture behind it no longer is negative as it once was. Campaigns like the one below show the real people behind the label: real, successful, aspiring people.
“As society’s attitude on cannabis continues toward a pro-legalization hive mind, our media will continue to reflect its social standing.” (Kevin Cortez, Leafly 2018)
With knowledge and having the perfect platform, the stereotype of the marijuana user will cease to exist. Marijuana has become so normalized in society that the person sitting next to you on the bus could be a hardcore marijuana user but all you see is a businessman. Now a days we see smoking marijuana as part of any person’s day. “The new normal” has always been normal, it is the recognition and acceptance that has grown, through media and society. Media has done a great job at destroying the label and showing the truth. The label has a new meaning and it must be taught worldwide.
