From maryjane to marijuana; a plea

Feb 25, 2016 Letters

Dear Editor,
Apart from the scientific evidence that shows that marijuana actually helps the condition of the people with certain medical ailments, many people use cannabis as an appetite stimulant, a digestive stimulant, an anti depressant, a sexual stimulant, a stress buster and a sedative. It is no wonder that the large pharmaceutical multinational corporations also lobby to keep it illegal. If one examines the sleep aids, Ambien CR and Lunesta as two examples of drugs produced by large companies, these two drugs have many severe side effects including suicidal thoughts.
Imagine that Governments sanctions the use of these dangerous drugs, while completely ignoring a much safer natural substance with little or no side effects that does the same job.   Here is a plant that has the potential to help many sufferers but because of misinformation, propaganda and paranoia, persons are prevented from capitalizing on its medicinal potential.
It is important to note that according to medical literature, drug use only becomes abuse when the use of the substance significantly interferes with the users’ daily life. But if even there is no abuse, there are still health concerns associated with cannabis use.
It is important to know how marijuana became illegal in the U.S.A., as it affects CARICOM directly. Being predominantly Black, CARICOM citizens must understand that this law is shrouded in racism. Blacks and Hispanics in the U.S. were demonized and used at the time to persuade the U.S. Government to change the law.
The parties involved used the Mexicans and Blacks as negative examples of who cannabis users were and the dangers they would present to the white citizens when intoxicated on cannabis, striking fear into the hearts of every white man. The truth is that the Mexicans and Black Americans did and still do use cannabis.
Back in the times of the great depression in the U.S.A., many Blacks and Mexicans in the southern part of the country were using cannabis. It was nicknamed “maryjane” at the time and could be found growing wild.   However, with the invention of petrochemicals, the emerging pharmaceutical and synthetic textile industry, lobbyists for the respective industries wanted the competition from industrial hemp eliminated.
Randolph Hearst the newspaper magnate, Alslinger the then drug czar, and Du Point the petrochemical pioneer conspired to make marijuana illegal, by creating a smear campaign using Blacks and Mexicans as the fall guys.   They even changed the name of the plant from English to Spanish to create a darker picture, hence the name “marijuana” came into being.
Their campaign was successful and within fifteen minutes of the Act being tabled in Congress, the law was passed making marijuana illegal in 1937. Now Blacks account for more than fifty percent of the inmates in American prisons even though they represent only ten percent of the population, with almost fifty percent in jail for simple possession charges.
What is even more disturbing is that CARICOM member states promote the very drug that kept their ancestors in slavery for two hundred years, while denying Black people an ancient African tradition.
With the stroke of a pen, CARICOM member Governments can effectively eliminate thousands of potential criminals that the police would be using their time and resources to apprehend. The criminal justice system would not have to deal with people that could potentially serve jail time in already overcrowded prison systems.
The possession of flowers is a victimless non-violent crime and persons should not be given a sentence of jail time. Violent offenders must be taken off the streets. Jail cells should be reserved for people that are a threat to other citizens, and to have our jail cells filled with persons who are no threat to society, is a crime in itself.
Therefore, the laws of CARICOM member states as exists today are actually helping to propagate criminals.   A person with EC$5.00 worth of cannabis in his possession is no threat to anyone but himself.   A person trying to grab the chain off another person’s neck, or break into one’s house or car is a potential murderer.   These violent offenders are the kind of people that the jail cell is meant for.
Andrea De Caires
Robertson S. Henry

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From maryjane to marijuana; a plea

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