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Cannabis is reemerging into a renewed state of acceptance amongst the general public across western society and leaving the stigma that links it with violent crime in the past. But where did the cannabis taboo originate from in the first place? Why was it demonised? Who benefitted from its illegalisation? Before we look into the contemporary and legal history of cannabis, lets consider the history of The plant across the ancient world.

Cannabis was first reported to be used as a medicinal agent in ancient China over 5000 years ago, being included in Emperor Shennong’s pharmacopeia for its healing properties. It was also used throughout ancient India being deeply embedded in Ayurvedic medicine. Cannabis was sited in the Artharva Veda as one of the five sacred plants. In its drinkable form ‘Bhang’ is still popularly consumed in India today. It is consumed for medicinal & ceremonial purposes by Hindu people, and even by the warrior sect of the Sikh people known as Nihang Sikhs.

Painting from Jaipur, India, showing the use and effects of bhang, anonymous, ca. 1800 — Source.

Cannabis later spread to the Islamic world, with hashish becoming popular in the 10th century, and later into Europe throughout the medieval ages. Unlike the Arabic recreational usage of cannabis, the plant was cultivated throughout Europe for industrial purposes such as creating rope, textiles, sails & paper. Medicinal usage of the plant was later recorded in European pharmacopeias into the 17th and 18th centuries to treat inflammation, chronic pain, & even epilepsy.  Hemp became a valuable crop during the foundation of the United States. George Washington & Thomas Jefferson both grew hemp. During the 19th century cannabis extracts were a common over the counter medicine to treat chronic pain, sleep disorders and nervous system issues.

During the early 20th century, smoking cannabis recreationally grew massively in popularity. It was especially popular and widely associated with Mexicans and black Jazz musicians. This popularity within the minority populous made the task of demonising cannabis for the general public easier to achieve, as America at the time was still largely a racist country. Harry Anslinger was appointed as the first commissioner of the U.S. Treasury Department's Federal Bureau of Narcotics (FBN) in 1930. He played a pivotal role in the criminalisation of cannabis, and passing the Marijuanna Tax Act of 1937 which effectively outlawed cannabis all together. Even The word ‘marijuanna’ was opted for use instead of ‘cannabis’ as it was thought that the foreign Hispanic word ‘marijuanna’ would play on the xenophobic fears of the population and further tighten the connotation of the drug to the immigrant population. This anti-marijuanna rhetoric was reinforced by a powerful piece of propaganda in the format of a 1936 film called ‘Reefer Madness’. This film was created with the intention of spreading fear of the plant amongst the general public and includes outrageously inaccurate examples of what happens when people get high. Most notably when a man beats another man to death while his wife laughs manically, encouraging the violent act.

It might be assumed that cannabis really was outlawed to safeguard the general public against its psychoactive effects. After all, reefer madness was released only six years after the end of prohibition in America. Public and Political opinion towards intoxicants was far less forgiving than it is today. In the name of public safety, the police were given new powers to act against marijuanna users, disproportionately effecting black and Mexican people, the police and the legal establishment therefore had more power to marginalise minority groups.

One massive factor that played into the illegalisation of cannabis was marketplace control. William Randolph Hearst, a powerful newspaper magnet, owned large stocks in timber and paper production. As hemp could provide a cheaper and more sustainable alternative to wood pulp paper production, Hearst had an active interest in seeing that the plant was outlawed for its intoxicant effects so that the plant could not be cultivated for its practical usages either. Hearst used his media empire to further spread misinformation and fear surrounding the cannabis plant, linking it to violent crime and minority groups. 

‘E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company’, a major American chemical company created many synthetic materials for industrial use during the 19th and 20th centuries. DuPont invented and/or commercialised many materials that are still widely in use today including nylon, teflon, lycra, kevlar & neoprene. It was in DuPonts economic interest to see that hemp could not be used as a competitor against the new wonder material that is nylon. It was Andrew Mellon, U.S Treasury Secretary and major DuPont investor that appointed Harry Anslinger to lead the Federal Bereau of Narcotics, and it was Anslinger that outlawed marijuana and made hemp production for industrial use outlawed also. This conflation of economic interest and statewide lawmaking can clearly be seen retrospectively as an act of corruption. Likely US lawmakers had little interest in whether or not cannabis had a negative effect on its users and was more interested in the economic gain that was to be reaped from the anti-cannabis lobby.

Though in the past it was demonised through propaganda and racial fear, cannabis is now leaving decades of stigma behind. It’s potential for medicinal use and newfound economic value have changed how U.S and international lawmakers view the plant. Decades of growing cultural significance throughout underground and artistic scenes have changed the public perception towards the plant. States across the U.S, and countries across the world are expelling the cannabis taboo and exploring ways in which the plant can exist legally within society. The end of the cannabis prohibition is being experienced in countries throughout the world as we enter into a more informed era for the plant and its place in society.