Marijuana Policy Project

Marijuana prohibition is a complete failure. The U.S. has higher rates of marijuana use than the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available to adults over 18. This failure is not for lack of trying. There were 872,720 marijuana arrests in 2007, the vast majority for simple possession. If health outcomes determined drug laws instead of cultural norms, marijuana would be legal. As an admitted former pot smoker, President Obama no doubt knows that marijuana is relatively harmless. Will Obama bring change to marijuana laws? There is a strong public health rationale for doing so. Marijuana prohibition opens a gateway to hard drugs. As long as organized crime controls marijuana distribution, consumers will continue to come into contact with addictive drugs like methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. Marijuana may be relatively harmless, but marijuana prohibition is deadly.