Legalization of Marijuana: Drug Dealer or Business Man?

By Christian Baté-Soto

The legalization of recreational marijuana will benefit society tremendously, however, previous distributors of marijuana have not been so fortunate. Over the past couple decades, so many citizens have been incarcerated for distributing marijuana. Being incarcerated can destroy an individual’s life in numerous ways: they will waste precious time behind bars, it will be difficult for them to get a job, they may not be able to vote, and they will carry around the stigma of having a criminal record for the rest of their lives. Now that recreational use of marijuana is legal in places like Illinois, it would only be fair to look into cases that involve possession of marijuana. These criminals with marijuana charges should get their charges expunged; they should also be given some type of reparation for all the time and opportunities lost.

In the early 1900s, medicinal marijuana was being studied in America. Unfortunately, we did not have the technology to produce a marijuana plant that would assist patients with specific illnesses. Since marijuana didn’t seem like a sufficient drug, medicinal organizations started to sell pain killers instead. If marijuana was legalized back then, medicinal companies that sold pain killers would have gone out of business. The criminalization of marijuana was part of the larger plan to keep people unhealthy and dependent on addictive pain killers.

The media began to portray people who consumed THC negatively in the 1920’s. The media stated that marijuana was a drug to be cautious of since it made people extremely violent. These negative ideologies lead to the criminalization of marijuana. By the end of the 1920s half of the states in America outlawed the use of cannabis. In the 1930s the media’s portrayal of marijuana became even worse with the release of the film “Reefer Madness.” “Reefer Madness” was a prominent movie that highlighted the so-called “dangers of cannabis.” This negative discourse of marijuana would eventually lead to hundreds of thousands of arrests throughout America.

Since marijuana is now legalized in Illinois, the justice system is giving people the opportunity to get their marijuana charges expunged. Even though this is a step in the right direction the justice system must do more than simply expunge marijuana charges. Having a clean record will not make up for lost time and job opportunities missed by those who were convicted of possession. People who had been charged with the possession of marijuana should receive some type of assistance to get them back on the right track. Minorities, specifically African Americans have had a much higher chance of being accused of possession of marijuana even though other races consume THC just as much. This is another way the justice system has purposefully put African Americans at a disadvantage. Businesses that distribute marijuana will soon be on the rise; corporations will be selling the product that has put so many individuals behind bars. However, instead of being incarcerated, they will now profit off of the drug that was once the inspiration behind “Reefer Madness.”

In addition, African Americans must also be cautious of the new forms of enslavement that will come with the legalization of marijuana. Throughout history, every time a chain is broken, an invisible chain reappears. As I previously stated, before the legalization of cannabis, African Americans were being accused of possession of marijuana at a higher rate than any other race. I don’t believe this type of behavior will change just because marijuana has been legalized. African Americans will continue to be harassed by police officers.

Instead of being charged with possession of marijuana, they will be charged with driving under the influence. Driving under the influence is a serious offense, however, law enforcement should not disproportionately arrest African Americans because of the color of their skin. There are many pros to the legalization of marijuana, but minorities should be more cautious than ever when using this substance. Overall, the legalization of marijuana will benefit our society and give people with marijuana charges a clean record.