History of Marijuana
How marijuana spread around the world
Marijuana has only been illegal for about 1% of its time in human history. It happened to be one of the largest agricultural crops in the world. Marijuana has been around for a very long time. It has been used in history for many different things, including clothing, medicinal purposes, and religious ceremony. For example, medieval Germans used cannabis for relieving pain during childbirth and for toothaches. Cannabis use originated thousands of years ago in Asia and has found its way to many parts of the world, eventually spreading to the Americas and the United States. It is important to note that there are two very different species of cannabis, there is cannabis sativa and cannabis sativa L. Cannabis sativa, also known as marijuana, has psychoactive properties. The other plant, Sativa L, also known as hemp, has no psychoactive properties, which basically means it can’t get you high. the history of cannabis use goes back as far as 12,000 years, which places the plant among one of the oldest plants known to humanity. Both hemp and marijuana were widely used in ancient China. It then moved to the middle east between 2000 B.C. and 1400 B.C. A group called The Scythians likely carried the drug into southeast Russia and Ukraine. The drug migrated to various regions of the world which eventually lead to it reaching North America.
The history of marijuana in the U.S.
Cannabis laws have been in effect since the 1600s, but not in the way you think. King James, I declared all colonists in the Virginia company had to grow hemp in order to sell to other countries. Also, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were marijuana growers. The first American flag was made with the plant and the declaration of independence was written on hemp paper. Recreational use was associated with the wave of Mexican immigrants that came to the U.S. after the Mexican revolution. They were the ones that started calling it marijuana. During the great depression, the wave of unemployment leads Americans to blame violence and crime on the drug. Because of these concerns, the government created the federal bureau of narcotics. Some of the leaders of the F.D.N released a propaganda campaign against the dangers of marijuana and the effects it can have on your life. Which lead to California becoming the first state to make marijuana use illegal. The marijuana tax act of 1937 was the first law against the possession of marijuana. President Nixon released a massive campaign against marijuana while other presidents took a less aggressive approach. The government wasn’t the only ones that campaigned against marijuana use. Religious groups around the country were making movies and commercials to “warn” Americans against the dangers this “addictive” drug. Movies like “ Reefer Madness” were released. They claimed smoking marijuana can lead to things like manslaughter, suicide, and much more. Marijuana then slowly starting becoming embedded in American history. In the 1950s marijuana started becoming an elite status within the journalist community. Then in the 1960s it became a symbol of rebellion against authority being associated with protesters and dropouts. When marijuana started becoming the norm, the United States Congress passed the controlled substance act classified marijuana as a schedule one drug. In 1975 the Mexican government destroyed all there marijuana crop which led to Columbia becoming the main distributor. These series of events lead to drug cartels becoming a huge problem in the U.S. This became such an issue that the united states government declared a war on the drug. They created a zero tolerance policy on the drug. Which led to the prisons being flooded with people who were charged with possession. After a decade or two during the 1990s marijuana use comes back into fashion after a president is elected that has admitted to using marijuana. In 1996 California became the first state to legalize medical marijuana which leads to many other states legalizing medical marijuana. When George Bush becomes elected in 2001, he became yet another president that has admitted to smoking marijuana, the drug started becoming mainstream. Which led to many A list celebrities saying they’ve used the drug. After Obama, someone who has been very open with his experiences with the drug gets elected president, many more states began legalizing the drug. In 2012 Washington and Colorado became the first ever states to legalize recreational use of marijuana.
citations
4TwentyToday. “History of Marijuana in 4 Minutes and 20 Seconds.” YouTube, YouTube, 18 Aug. 2014, www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCETi7QgqIw.
Beat, Mr. “History of Marijuana.” YouTube, YouTube, 28 Dec. 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrllyBmaCsI&t=59s.
Blaszczak-Boxe, Agata. “Marijuana’s History: How One Plant Spread Through the World.” LiveScience, Purch, 17 Oct. 2014, www.livescience.com/48337-marijuana-history-how-cannabis-travelled-world.html.
