Legalizing Marijuana in the United States (US)
Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the US. Despite the existence of federal law prohibiting its use and distribution, states have been experimenting on liberalization policies of the substance for the past five decades (Pacula & Smart, 2019). However, the scientific evidence that has been generated remains inconclusive regarding the impact of the guidelines. Pacula and Smart (2019) note that state decriminalization policies first emerged in the 1970s, while patient medical access laws were adopted in the 1990s. The states have more recently progressed to experiment with legalizing recreational markets, thereby resulting in a spectrum of marijuana liberalization rules. Decriminalization laws often seek to reduce the penalty of possessing small amounts of drugs. Therefore, the US should legalize marijuana because of its medicinal purpose, revenue generation benefits, role in crime reduction, and will promote racial justice. However, permitting its free use poses the risk of contributing to addiction.
Patients with a wide range of symptoms and diseases have used cannabis as a self-management strategy because of its medicinal properties. According to Ware et al. (2015), countries like Canada have released marijuana use regulations requiring patients to obtain a signed document from a health professional to access medical cannabis. However, the safety and efficacy of the substance have been a significant barrier to the physicians’ involvement. Therefore, Ware et al. (2015) undertook a multicentre cohort study to assess the safety issues of using marijuana as a pain management regimen for patients. The investigation evaluated herbal cannabis from Prairie Plant Systems Inc., which contained 12.5+-1.5% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Consequently, the results of the study indicated that compared with baseline, the cannabis group showed a significant reduction in average pain intensity over one year compared with the control category (Ware et al., 2015). Mouhamed et al. (2018) attribute the medicinal properties of marijuana to phytocannabinoids and cannabidiol (CBD) that mimic human endocannabinoids anandamide (AEA) and 2-AG respectively. AEA and 2-AG bind to the cannabinoid receptors 1 (CB1) to initiate a signaling cascade by releasing neurotransmitters. Hence, the components of marijuana exert their effects on the immune system to treat and manage neuropathic pain.
Furthermore, the legalization of marijuana has the potential to become a significant source of revenue for the US economy. The enforcement of marijuana prohibition laws consumes billions of taxpayer dollars annually. Golzar (2015) uses the state of Florida as a model potential market to assess and understand the economics of the decriminalization of cannabis. Existing research from economists assumes that legalization reduces government expenditure due to decreased enforcement costs and the increase in revenue that create a new avenue for levying taxes on production and distribution. A 2005 study by Miron indicates that the reduction in annual spending by the US government could save up to $7.7 billion by terminating marijuana prohibition (Golzar, 2015). The taxation of the drug, like all other goods, would also generate tax revenue of up to $2.4 billion, while a “sin” tax like that imposed on alcohol or tobacco would raise $6.2 billion (Golzar, 2015). The combination of variable costs from marijuana enforcement, judicial, and corrections budget, and the taxation revenue indicates that legalization will increase income for the US government. Therefore, decriminalization is an alternative for harnessing the cannabis market to raise revenue.
Additionally, studies have shown that the introduction of medical marijuana laws will reduce the rates of violent crime. Gavrilova et al. (2019) assert that Mexico is the major route of entry for most illicit drugs in the US, with around $6 billion finding its way back across to the border to profit the large drug trafficking organizations (DTOs). The DTOs are the major contributors to crime in the states along the border because the smuggling of illicit drugs is characterized by extreme levels of violence. The contests for revenues in the drug market usually result in violent acts between the smugglers. Gavrilova et al. (2019) observe that the origin of the drug represents the main difference between states that have enacted medical marijuana laws and those that still prohibit. Significantly, Mexican DTOs have traditionally firmly controlled US cannabis markets. Thus, to disrupt their illicit trade and resultant violence, it is important to have laws that allow the local production of marijuana because they lower the barrier to market entry and create competition for the incumbent DTOs. Revenue from the legal trade in the drug can also boost the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) border control to end the cycle of drug violence.
Similarly, marijuana legalization is important in promoting racial justice because drug criminalization disproportionately affects African American communities. According to Kaminoff (2018), the “War on Drugs,” defining the sentencing laws for non-violent drug crimes, have caused the mass incarceration of thousands of Americans. The aggressive drug criminalization policies have stripped citizens of their basic civil rights and decimated community social, economic, and familial structures. The Household Survey on Drug Abuse and Health figures indicate that although Blacks and White Americans use marijuana at equal rates, African Americans are 3.5 times more likely to be arrested for possession than Whites (Kaminoff, 2018). Hence, the racial disparities in drug arrests have strengthened the calls to adopt legalization policies for marijuana use. The mandatory minimum sentencing scheme has contributed to a significant increase in the number of Blacks involved in the criminal justice system for drug crimes. For instance, in 2000, African Americans constituted 80 to 90 percent of all Americans incarcerated for drug offenses (Kaminoff, 2018). The arrests and imprisonment are usually related to low-level drug crimes, with over half being for marijuana possession. Therefore, the racial justice argument for cannabis legalization attempts to secure civil rights, mostly for African Americans who suffer more from the American war on drugs.
Although marijuana legalization comes with significant medicinal, economic, law enforcement, and racial justice benefits, there is the risk of increased addiction from the drug. Hopfer (2014) notes that the legal availability of cannabis for adults has multiple implications for substance use among adolescents. The Surgeon General’s 1964 on the harm of smoking represented the most important substance abuse intervention in the US. The report, combined with the efforts of anti-smoking groups, public health agencies, and physicians, led to a shift in public perception regarding smoking and a steady decline in smoking that saved millions of lives. Contrariwise, marijuana poses a reverse phenomenon, with the claims of the medicinal properties attracting widespread state-level decriminalization. Hopfer (2014) argues that by legalizing marijuana, the US may have to tackle a significant public health problem related to adolescent cannabis abuse and dependence. Scientific evidence has shown that the use of the drug is associated with impairment of cognitive functioning, addiction, and the elevated risk of psychosis.
Summarily, the legalization of marijuana is a topic that has attracted significant debate in the US. On the one hand, proponents of decriminalization consider the medicinal properties of the drug, which is used in reducing pain to manage some chronic diseases. Besides, supporters of legalization view marijuana as a revenue generator because of the existence of a large market for it. Hence, its sale can be a new tax base for the government, while decriminalization also saves costs for marijuana enforcement. There is also the potential for reducing violent crime because the legal market will replace the DTOs in Mexico, which often use violence to control distribution. Proponents also advocate for marijuana legalization to promote social justice because the American war on drugs disproportionately affects African Americans. However, decriminalization will likely increase the addiction burden because adolescents will access a drug that is often only available for adults. Generally, the benefits of legalization are significant and may warrant further consideration to make a better decision.
References
Gavrilova, E., Kamada, T., & Zoutman, F. (2019). Is legal pot crippling Mexican drug trafficking organisations? The effect of medical marijuana laws on US crime. The Economic Journal, 129(617), 375-407.
Golzar, T. I. (2015). An Economic Analysis of Marijuana Legalization in Florida (Doctoral dissertation, Duke University Durham).
Hopfer, C. (2014). Implications of marijuana legalization for adolescent substance use. Substance Abuse, 35(4), 331-335.
Kaminoff, B. S. (2018). Do Black and White Americans Hold Different Views on Marijuana Legalization? Analyzing the Impact of “The War on Drugs” on Racialized Perceptions of Legalizing Marijuana. Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research, 4(1), 8.
Mouhamed, Y., Vishnyakov, A., Qorri, B., Sambi, M., Frank, S. S., Nowierski, C., … & Szewczuk, M. R. (2018). Therapeutic potential of medicinal marijuana: an educational primer for health care professionals. Drug, Healthcare and Patient Safety, 10, 45.
Ware, M. A., Wang, T., Shapiro, S., Collet, J. P., Boulanger, A., Esdaile, J. M., … & O’Connell, C. (2015). Cannabis for the management of pain: assessment of safety study (COMPASS). The Journal of Pain, 16(12), 1233-1242.
Pacula, R. L., & Smart, R. (2017). Medical marijuana and marijuana legalization. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 13, 397-419.