Stoned History: From Illegal to Essential
- Urbn Leaf
- Oct 25, 2023
- 5 min read
Currently, if you live in a Green state, cannabis is as easy to get as a delivery pizza. There are countless ways to consume, tons of brands to choose from, and even tourist attractions like cannabis cafes and weed museums popping up around the country!We are in what we like to call the ‘Golden Age of Cannabis.’If you’ve followed along with our Stoned history lessons you can see it’s taken over 100 years to normalize the use of cannabis and end the negative stigmas instilled by previous politicians.For our final lesson we’re covering how cannabis has gone from illegal to essential from 2000-2020.
2000– DEA busts and Mexican drug tunnels
The 2000’s were a weird grey period
as
some
states started easing into the medical market
.
Plenty of Americans
were
smoking
marijuana,
but it was still
very
illegal
in
recreational sense
.
Cue
the
televised
DEA helicopter
raids
and
widely
publicized
drug tunnel
busts
.
In 2006, American Federal agents found a 2400-foot-long tunnel that led from Tijuana into San Diego. This obviously caused tension and added to the negative stigma of cannabis use.
Until this point c
annabis consumers
had been thought of as lazy, hippie
dope heads
that just liked to get high and
dance
to music. However, hip
pies and
artists
weren’t the only ones making headlines.
Professional a
thletes like
NFL star
Ricky Williams
and
Olympic gold medalist
Michael Phelps were caught
smoking
weed
and
suspended from their teams
. Phelps was
dropped
as the face of
Kellogg's
Cereal
and Williams
was suspended for a minimum of one year
.
Controversy arose as the stigmas were put in question: How could a professional athlete perform at such a high level if they were under the influence of
cannabis. Didn’t this ‘drug’ make you lazy?
I
f th
ese
over-achieving
individuals
w
ere
smoking weed, who else was?
From 2000-2010 there was a sharp increase in
cannabis arrests
i
n California.
We
,
as a
n
ation
,
were
starting to experience
economic
issues
during the Great Recession
and
as a result
funding
was cut from
the prison system.
The
notorious
War on Drugs
was finally starting to slow do
wn.
2010 – almost there but not quite
Cannabis took center stage
on the West Coast
in 2010 during the first ever High Times Cannabis Cup
. It was held
exclusive
ly for
medical patients
in San Francisco, California. For 20 years, the Cup
had always been held
in Amsterdam
, but it finally
landed on
domestic soil
.
Right around this time s
olvent based hash oil
s were making their way into the market
and
the art of dabbing was born
.
Despite the
se
advances, there was an undeniable truth that the DEA
was
still
lurking
around the corner.
2012
On April 2, 20 12, the federal government led a raid on Oaksterdam University w hile a man opened fire at a nearby college killing seven individuals. This tragic event made critics skeptical of the DEA and urged policy makers towards reform. Later that year Colorado and Washington ma de history by legalizing cannabis for adult-use through Amendment 64 and Initiative 502 .
2014 - Recreational Adult-use Cannabis begins
Alaska and Oregon legalized recreational cannabis through ballot measure.
2018
California, Nevada, Maine, and Massachusetts approved ballot measures to legalize recreational cannabis. In December of 2018 the Federal Hemp Bill was legalized allowing the manufacture and distribution of hemp products in the U.S . and it felt like t he century long battle was finally ending .
Dispensaries
transition
ed
from seedy back alley shops into beautiful retail stores resembling
Apple
and Starbucks. New cannabis brands and
products were coming onto shelves and
shaping the
industry
into what it's become today.
Normalization was on the horizon as
m
ajor
celebrities, activists, and influential leaders came out of the closet about their cannabis use.
For example,
Snoop
Dogg
always had a stoner reputation
,
but he
really shook America in
2018
when he teamed up with
Martha Stewart to release a cookbook, ‘From Crook to Cook’
and
a
show on VH1
the
‘
Potluck Party Challenge.
’
The jokes are endless and seeing the two personalities meld is priceless.
Their partnership
publicly
proved weed can create relationships and unite
individuals
from different backgrounds
.
From Willie Nelson to Wiz Khalifa
to
celebrities
made
their love fo
r
cannabis
VERY
publicly
know
n
and
started to
capitalize on the legal industry.
Celebrity backed cannabis brands have become the hottest trend.
Wiz Khalifa
created
his own strain ‘Khalifa Kush
,
’
Willie
launched Willie’s Reserv
e
,
Tommy Chong is the
face of Chong’s Choice,
and
list goes on..
2019
Cannabis was never a stranger to music festivals, but it wasn’t until 2019 that the first major American festival allowed cannabis brands as sponsors. Outsidelands made history when it created a separate 21+ space inside thefestival called ‘Grasslands’ where cannabis brands could create educational retail experiences. Festival goers were now able to purchase cannabis directly from licensed cannabis partners.
2020 – Current state of cannabis
As of today, more than two-thirds of the United States have legalized cannabis in one form or another.
Recreational adult use cannabis is now legal in 11 states , 1 Federal Territory (DC), and in two of our island territories ( Northern Mariana islands & Guam).
Medical marijuana is now legal in 33 states (including the 11 recreational states) and four U.S. island territories including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
And for the first time in history, licensed cannabis retailers have been deemed essential businesses among the COVID-19 global pandemic.
In California anyone over the age of 21 can visit a dispensary in-person or place their order online for delivery.
Options
for products
are endless
as the industry has grown to feature everything from flower to cannabis infused lubricant. There are infused lotion
s, bath soaks, patches and pens
to help relieve a
ches and pains
. Capsules, vapes, or tinctures can help you get a better night’s sleep.
Not to mention the flower these days has been grown to perfection. There is truly something for everyone whether
it's
your first time or 50
th
.
The last 100+ years
opinion
s have
sway
ed
from side to side concerning cannabis. While we are in a
‘
G
reen Rush
’
,
we’d be foolish to say
we are in the clear. Cannabis is still federally illegal
resulting in
issues
with
banking
services, loans,
and federal relief during a crisis (like a global pandemic
)
.
26
states have decriminalized or removed the threat of jail time for small amounts of
marijuana, but tons of individuals
a
cross the nation
are still incarcerated
or being arrested
for cannabis crimes. Cannabis might be considered essential in some states, but until marijuana is legalized on a federal level, retailers and brands remain far from essential in the government's eyes.
Although progress has been made, the fight isn’t over yet!
Download our free 'illegal to essential' coloring sheets below:
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