THE UGLY TRUTH BEHIND MARIJUANA PROHIBITION

Dear Editor,

Lost in the debate over marijuana is the ugly truth behind marijuana
prohibition. North America's marijuana laws are based on culture and
xenophobia, not science. The first marijuana laws were a racist reaction to
Mexican migration during the early 1900s. Writing under the pen name Janey
Canuck, Emily Murphy first warned Canadians about the dread reefer and its
association with non-white immigrants. The sensationalist yellow journalism
of William Randolph Hearst led to its criminalization in the United States.

Dire warnings that marijuana inspires homicidal rages have been
counterproductive at best. Whites did not even begin to smoke marijuana
until a soon-to-be entrenched government bureaucracy began funding reefer
madness propaganda. When threatened, the drug war gravy train predictably
decries the "message" that drug policy reform sends to children.

There is a big difference between condoning marijuana use and protecting
children from drugs. Decriminalization acknowledges the social reality of
marijuana and frees users from the stigma of criminal records.

What's really needed is a regulated market with age controls. Separating
the hard and soft drug markets is critical.

As long as marijuana distribution remains in the hands of organized crime,
consumers will continue to come into contact with addictive drugs like
cocaine. This "gateway" is the direct result of a fundamentally flawed policy.

Students who want to help reform harmful marijuana laws should contact
Students for Sensible Drug Policy at http://www.SchoolsNotPrisons.com.

Historical background on U.S. laws can be found at:
http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/Library/studies/vlr/vlrtoc.htm

Robert Sharpe, MPA

Policy Analyst

Common Sense for Drug Policy

http://www.csdp.org

Washington, D.C.