Story by Abigail Portnoy, photograph by Jack Evans

Recently, an increased number of states have begun legalizing recreational marijuana use with over half of the country’s support. Yet, new legislation for its use has also caused widespread controversy. Marijuana’s impact on teen drug use, tax revenue, black markets, and consumer safety are all hot topics being debated throughout our nation today. However, marijuana will also undoubtedly have a major influence on equality within the U.S. With the minority injustice and decreased national unity that plagues our country today, marijuana’s impact on equality will prove significant to national progress.

The controversy in question pertains to whether marijuana legalization will reduce or augment pre-existing disparities in the U.S. Let’s take a look at both sides.

Prior to marijuana’s legalization in many states, studies have shown significant racial disparities in punishments for illegal drug use. Across the United States, marijuana use is relatively equal between both white people and people of color. However, a black person in the U.S. is 3.7 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession, proving the extent of the systemic racism that runs deep into our nation’s history and has unfortunately remained prevalent in our nation’s present. Our society has continuously singled out racial minorities, painting marijuana as everything from “a scourge from South of the border, to a ‘jazz drug’, to the corruptive intoxicant of choice for beatniks and hippies” (Hudak). The legalization of marijuana has not corrected the wrongs of the past, where police have singled out and unjustly targeted minorities. However, if approached correctly, policies regarding marijuana could result in widespread, positive change. In order to do so, tax revenue from marijuana must be correctly redistributed back into neglected communities that have suffered most from racial bias in much of our police system. Those who have been arrested for drug use and have endured unjust consequences must be provided with new employment, housing, and educational opportunities. Only through such efforts will our nation be able to begin righting the wrongs of the past and bring our nation closer to unity.

Of course, marijuana legalization could further promote racial disparities if policies are incorrectly enacted and executed. Two years after Washington D.C.’s decriminalization of marijuana, a black person is still 11 times more likely to be arrested for public marijuana use than a white person (Resing). If tax revenue continues to be improperly allocated and directed more towards the prosperity of the wealthy class, our nation’s wealth gap will only increase, further dividing our nation. With marijuana legalization, there is still room for police to target minorities by disproportionately issuing DUIs or finding loopholes in government policies. In order to prevent this from happening, we must stay vigilant against over-policing of minority communities and support legislation that will effectively cultivate a more equitable future through grassroots solutions for the entirety of our nation.

Works Cited

Hudak, John. “Marijuana’s Racist History Shows the Need for Comprehensive Drug Reform.” Brookings, 23 June 2020, www.brookings.edu/blog/how-we-rise/2020/06/23/marijuanas-racist-history-shows-the-need-for-comprehensive-drug-reform/.

Resing, Charlotte. “Marijuana Legalization Is a Racial Justice Issue.” American Civil Liberties Union, 2019, www.aclu.org/blog/criminal-law-reform/drug-law-reform/marijuana-legalization-racial-justice-issue.