A Brief Overview of the Weaponization of Cannabis

If you follow me on social media you are familiar with my deep affinity for Cannabis.  It has been one of the most profound teaching plants that I have been blessed to propagate and tend to in all its stages.  This year I offered to support a small group of outdoor cannabis growers.  It was such a beautiful experience.

I had the opportunity to mentor some newbie growers, and vicariously relive my initial feelings of wonderment.  And while this plant offers so much medicine, and not just topical or physical consumption; medicine for the spirit from the act of propagation and tending to the plant, it is also still labeled as a Schedule 1 Drug by the DEA.  Some other Schedule 1 drugs include: heroin, LSD, Ecstasy, and a psylocybin.  I work with so many folks that depend on cannabis to control their chronic pain versus opioids or prescribed narcotics.  Some folks can experience pain relief by simply using this plant topically.  Yet here we are still fighting for this plant to be legalized by the federal government.  I want to dive in and give you a brief overview of how cannabis has been weaponized - specifically targeting people of color. 

So, let’s delve into a brief overview of cannabis prohibition, how it was weaponized, how it made it on the Schedule 1 list for dangerous and illegal substances, and the multi-layered agenda behind prohibition.  First and foremost, prior to prohibition, cannabis was actually listed in medical journals as a remedy for a myriad of medical maladies.  You could actually purchase it over the counter.  In 1930 Harry Anslinger spearheaded the Federal Bureau of Narcotics.  Ansligner was an open racist/bigot that feared social integration between white and Black and Brown people. 

During the late 1920’s-1930’s, jazz had become extremely popular and the music scene was encouraging folks from all walks of life to congregate in the same spaces. Anslinger’s agenda was to weaponize cannabis with intent to create fear and to reinforce segregation/subjugation.  Because cannabis was used both medicinally and recreationally, and was a plant ally that blurred color line, prohibition was strategically used to segregate white folks from folks of color. Anslinger perpetuated a negative connotation of Black, Indigenous, People of Color with the agenda of maintaining white, patriarchal hierarchy.  Incarceration that resulted from prohibition created a labor force (modern day slavery) within the for-profit prison system.  The Gore files are government files that Anslinger culminated, which document his push for false propaganda despite research that debunked his assertions that cannabis was in fact dangerous (loco weed and reefer madness.) The files expose his racially charged policies.  He referred to cannabis as “marijuana” to ensure he targeted Mexican folks as well.  In fact, many people in Congress had no idea they were prohibiting the use of cannabis because Anslinger referred to it as marijuana/marihuana.  The moniker “marijuana” is in fact deeply rooted in racism and politics, and therefore it has been removed from my lexicon.  This is a personal choice.  Others have opted to reclaim the reference “marijuana” as a means of resistance.  Wherever you land within that spectrum is an individual choice, but knowledge is key. 

Harry Anslinger teamed up DuPont and William Hearst, a newspaper mogul that feared the hemp industry because it threatened his millions from his timber company that supplied material for his newspaper. Hearst ran fabricated anti-cannabis propaganda in his newspaper, which supported both his special interests solidifying his financial position all while perpetuating Anslinger’s agenda.  It was most definitely a mutually beneficial relationship.

 Fast forwarding with so much in between, Nixon, Carter, Reagan Clinton, and Biden were ALL key players in regards to policy that kept BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) folks incarcerated for miniscule amounts of cannabis. We are talking years to DECADES for less than a gram.  It is disturbing that folks that are aligned with a political party tend to blame the opposing political party for these atrocious policies rooted in racism, when in fact it was both parties colluding.  Both political parties are intricately woven into the thread of coloniality, which has birthed white supremacy, oppression and subjugation by means of legislation.  I look forward to sharing more about this sacred plant and its food pathways in another blog post.