Research Paper 1

Lester 1 Josh Lester Professor Renner Engish 1020 – 004 20 September 2008

To Legalize, or Not to Legalize? That is the Question On Monday, June 6, 2005, the Supreme Court handled the case of Raich vs. Ashcroft, a controversial ruling that is regarded as one of the most influential in the history of marijuana legalization. Angel Raich, a terminally ill woman who suffers from several conditions that cause severe, chronic pain, including fibromyalgia, endometriosis, scoliosis, uterine fibroid tumors and rotator cuff syndrome. She is also afflicted with an inoperable brain tumor, seizures, and life-threatening wasting syndrome, accompanied by near-constant nausea. (Salon 2) She resides in California, one of the eleven states that recognize medical marijuana as a true medicine, in certain cases. This was one of those cases. Raich, without the aid of marijuana, would endure excruciating painand could possibly die. Had she lived a century earlier, when marijuana was legally prescribed as the number one treatment for many illnesses, this would not have been an issue. However, time was not on her side. To prevent this atrocity from occurring, she decided to sue the United States federal government. After much deliberation, the Court decided that her use of medical marijuana was in fact illegal (Salon 3). They ruled six to three that Raich should not be allowed the use of medical cannabis, although without it she very well might die. Why is this case so important? Not only did it challenge the federal government’s rights to govern states, but it also shows United States citizens how backwards our judicial system really is. Why would they refuse this poor, sickly woman her one source of solace in her painful world? That is a fantastic question. Our country was built upon the idea of freedom, and yet this woman remains shackled to her miserable life, for no reason more than corruption in our government. The first law concerning cannabis hemp was one forcing citizens to grow it. In 1619, a law was enacted in the colony of Jamestown, Virginia, ordering farmers to grow hemp. If a certain inhabitant refused to grow the plant, they were often fined heavily; if they did not grow cannabis during shortages (1763-1767 for instance), they could be incarcerated. (Herer 1). Cannabis hemp was also used as a form of legal tender in most of early America; one could pay their taxes with the plant. Such founding fathers as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington grew hemp on their plantations. Franklin even started the first American paper mills using cannabis. (Herer 3) This further aided our independence from England by lessening our dependence on British paper. The War of 1812, a series of skirmishes between Great Britain and the United States, was a war fought

primarily over access to Russia’s immense hemp cache. Napoleon, one of our allies, invaded Russia to ensure that we had control of this incredibly rich resource. Lester 2 For over three millennia, marijuana has been the world’s most important agricultural crop and most important industry, producing a vast majority of the planet’s fiber, lighting oil, fabric, incense, medicine, paper, and a it was a primary source of food oil and protein for humans and animals alike. Cannabis has also been used in religious ceremonies, to aid in channeling our ancestors’ creative minds to construct talismans and other sacred objects. (Herer 6) Marijuana has also been used for many medicinal practices over the ages, for a majority of mankind’s illnesses, for youngsters and senior citizens alike. Hashish extracts, elixirs, and tinctures were widely regarded as “miracle drugs”. Queen Victoria, who reigned in England from 1837 to 1901, used cannabis resins for her menstrual cramps and PMS. The U.S. Pharmacopoeia shows that cannabis can be used for treating fatigue, coughing fits, asthma, rheumatism, delirium tremens, and migraines (Herer 9). Many food products with hemp as a main ingredient were consumed up until this century. Monks were required to eat hempseedcontaining porridge for each of their meals. Hemp, which can be pressed for its richly nutritious vegetable oil, contains the highest amount of essential fatty acids in the entirety of the plant kingdom; these essential oils regulate our immune system responses and clear out our arteries of cholesterol and plaque. The by-product of pressing oil from the hempseed is a high quality protein seed cake, which can be ground and baked into cakes, casseroles, and breads. Hempseed can also bee harvested for use as bird food and fishing bait. The Declaration of Independence clearly states that the function of the government is to ensure “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. However, they seem intent on breaking this tradition by incarcerating pot smokers, even though all they are doing is pursuing happiness. Many writers, artists, and musicians have used marijuana for creative stimulation. Lewis Carrol, who wrote Alice in Wonderland, was under the influence of marijuana when he wrote his masterpiece. Many jazz greats, such as Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, smoked weed, as well as a wide variety of modern artists, such as the Beatles, The Eagles, the Rolling Stones, Bob Marley, Jefferson Airplane, Willie Nelson, Joe Walsh, David Bowie, Iggy Pop, the Grateful Dead, and Snoop Dog (Herer 11). Temperance groups have been keen on prohibiting relaxing drugs, such as alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis throughout history. Abraham Lincoln is quoted as saying the following on the subject:

“Prohibition….goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man’s appetite by legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes….A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded.” (Herer 11) Many articles of clothing can be created using hemp. In fact, until the 1880’s, 80% of all American textiles and fabrics were principally made from fibers of cannabis. These articles lasted much longer than cotton, silk, polyester, and other fabrics. If our country was to revert back to using hemp to make clothes, not only would Americans save money by only having to buy fewer outfits, but the clothing would be biodegradable, thus making the earth cleaner. The government, however, Lester 3 doesn’t want the public to know this information; for over seventy years, they have suppressed this knowledge from its citizens. Marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug in the United States (surpassed only by alcohol and tobacco), and has been used by roughly eighty million Americans. (NORML 1)Government surveys indicate that some twenty million Americans have smoked pot in the last year, and more than eleven million do so regularly, despite the harsh laws prohibiting its use. Enforcing marijuana prohibition costs American taxpayers an estimated $10 billion dollars annual, and results in the incarceration of more than 829,000 people per year – a much higher number than the total of arrestees for all violent crimes combined, including murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. (NORML 3)