Argumentative Essay On Legalization Of Marijuana

Marijuana has been used for both recreational and medical reasons since approximately 2737 BC. Narconon states, “The first direct reference to a cannabis product as a psychoactive agent dates from 2737 BC, in the writings of the Chinese emperor Shen Nung.” However, its properties were deemed more useful to help medically and ailments of the mind and body. The use of cannabis and marijuana have been used centuries before our time, however, when the criminalization of marijuana became a prevalent issue after the Mexican Revolution in the early 1900’s, crime rates started to sky rocket. The demonization of marijuana is impractical and unnecessary. Cannabis should be legalized in all fifty states for both medical applications and recreational

Some believe that the monks in India used marijuana as a way to reach harmony and peace during meditation. Also, it became very popular with Muslims after alcohol was banned by the Koran. However, when the Spanish brought cannabis to America in the late 1500’s, its uses expanded far past recreation. Hemp became a major cash crop and was used for fibers in textiles, and was later replaced by cotton. However, marijuana did not become a popular narcotic throughout urban America until the prohibition of alcohol in the early 1920’s. It was not until the 1930’s during hearings on marijuana law that accusations of cannabis’ ability to cause men of color to become violent and solicit sex from white women arose. This imagery was used to the advantage of the law and became the backdrop for the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, banning the use and sale of marijuana. However, by the 1970’s this act was reasoned unconstitutional and replaced with the Controlled Substances Act. This established a schedule ranking system for all controlled substances based on their dangerousness and potential for addiction. Marijuana was categorized as a schedule 1 drug, the most restrictive

As for marijuana possession, arrests for this crime have decreased by 84 percent. "We’ve had great experience in Denver and we hope the rest of the country can learn from that," said Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Polis during a press conference to discuss the encouraging results. A very common presumption associated with the legalization of marijuana was that citizens would face the problem of an increase in traffic fatalities, however the DPA reported a 3 percent drop in traffic fatalities in 2014. There has yet to be any negative crime related outcomes due to the legalization of marijuana. In America, residents are paying approximately $260 per year on corrections, totaling the country 's annual $80 billion. These immense costs coincide with the financial deprivation of many school systems. Ben Harris, co-author of "Ten Economic Facts about Crime and Incarceration in the United States,” expressed an opinion shared by many Americans that stated, “For someone who has committed a violent offense, we as a society can agree it 's worth putting this person in prison. But when it comes to putting a person in prison to reduce the chance they will commit a low-level crime, such as dealing or obtaining a small amount of drugs, the benefits aren 't