Marijuana Legalization
Criminal marijuana prohibition has been a failure. Just as alcohol prohibition created the Al Capones of the 1920s, the federal war on drugs has created the modern day drug cartels. Over 20 million Americans have been arrested for marijuana offenses since 1965, while usage rates are increasing each year; these are victimless “crimes” for possessing a plant that God put on planet Earth. The the racial discrepancies that exist as a result of the war on drugs are another area of concern; arrest statistics consistently show that young African Americans are vastly discriminated against, particularly in poor inner city communities across the country. Furthermore, Marijuana has been clinically proven to alleviate harmful diseases and disorders such as cancer, ALS, neurological disorders and PTSD. I believe that the time has come to amend criminal prohibition and replace it with a system of legalization, taxation, regulation, and education.
Resources:
Marijuana Policy Project
Drug Policy Alliance
End the Drug War