A History Lesson in Cannabis

Hey Dudes!!! Alice here. ✌

Today we learn about the medical history of Cannabis. Our favorite plant has definitely made its presence known, not just in the US, but in the world, for centuries. In fact, the history of medical cannabis goes back to ancient times. We’re talking AT LEAST 500 B.C. China and India, Egypt and even the bible talk about it’s healing properties. Our nation's first president, George Washington grew hemp for 30 years. His diary entries indicate that he grew hemp at Mount Vernon, his plantation. According to his agricultural ledgers, he had a particular interest in the medicinal use of Cannabis, and several of his diary entries indicate that he indeed was growing Cannabis with a high Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content - marijuana.

"Cannabis was eventually implemented into western medicine for its therapeutic qualities sometime during the 19th century after Sir William Brooke O’Shaughnessy, an Irish doctor studying in India, found that cannabis extracts could help lessen stomach pain and vomiting in people suffering from cholera. Because of his discovery, it is also reported at that time Queen Victoria used Cannabis for menstrual cramps. God save the Queen! By 1850, marijuana had made its way into the United States Pharmacopeia which listed marijuana as treatment for numerous afflictions, including: neuralgia, tetanus, typhus, cholera, rabies, dysentery, alcoholism, opiate addiction, anthrax, leprosy, incontinence, gout, convulsive disorders, tonsillitis, insanity, excessive menstrual bleeding, and uterine bleeding, among others. Patented marijuana tinctures were sold..."

It all seemed to be going swimmingly for our little plant. Who knows, it could even shelter, clothe and heal the world, at this rate. However, in 1933 marijuana became the target of government control. Sensationalistic stories linked violent acts to cannabis consumption... Many of the most outlandish stories appeared in newspapers published by William Randolph Hearst. Hearst reportedly had financial interests in the lumber and paper industries. He may have sought to eliminate competition from hemp." Thanks a lot, dude! For it was that very step that started mass hysteria about cannabis. It's also a step that led to racial issues within our country and the world.

In Eric Schlooser’s 1994 Atlantic article "Reefer Madness" he recalled this, "The political upheaval in Mexico that culminated in the Revolution of 1910 led to a wave of Mexican immigration to states throughout the American Southwest. The prejudices and fears that greeted these peasant immigrants also extended to their traditional means of intoxication: smoking marijuana. Police officers in Texas claimed that marijuana incited violent crimes, aroused a "lust for blood," and gave its users "superhuman strength." Rumors spread that Mexicans were distributing this "killer weed" to unsuspecting American schoolchildren. Sailors and West Indian immigrants brought the practice of smoking marijuana to port cities along the Gulf of Mexico. In New Orleans newspaper articles associated the drug with African-Americans, jazz musicians, prostitutes, and underworld whites. "The Marijuana Menace," as sketched by anti-drug campaigners, our little plant was suddenly personified by inferior races and social deviants. Forget what you know and have already learned. Marijuana is officially the enemy to all those in the 1% of power, who have special interests in opioids, logging and the prisons systems.

And it just gets worse. Luckily, scientists and patients like us refused to be quiet. Enter, Dennis Peron. Join me next time as we learn about

the Father of medical cannabis!!!!

Be good,

Alice

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/07/14/201981025/the-mysterious-history-of-marijuana

https://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/historical-timeline/#1600-1899