Marijuana, also called Cannabis, is a mind-altering drug, but it is not a narcotic drug. Marijuana is still illegal according to the federal government, but some states have passed laws that differ from that. Marijuana is currently illegal in some states, but not all. Some states, such as Colorado and Washington, have just recently ended marijuana prohibition.  There are some have legalized marijuana both recreationally and medicinally. Some states have decriminalized marijuana. Some states have legalized marijuana just for medicinal use. There a good amount of states that still to this day have laws that make marijuana illegal both recreationally and medicinally. Marijuana legalization is a highly debated topic in the United States. Marijuana is less damaging than other drugs, and has some positive health effects, and can help the country, the government, and the citizens in the United States. However, marijuana has some negative effects on health and the country as a whole. Legalizing marijuana both medicinally and recreationally would result in positive health benefits, financial benefits, and a reduction in both domestic and foreign crime,

Marijuana is illegal mostly due to racism, corrupt legislators, fear, and protection of corporate profits. For the majority of human history, marijuana has been used by a lot of people with access to the drug (Guither). It originally started when an influx of Mexican immigrants were flooding into American, and they brought marijuana with them (Guither). It became illegal so the American government had a reason to arrest and deport Mexican citizens (Guither). Then when marijuana reached the African-American community, the still racist country made the punishments for marijuana possession and distribution even harsher and the community ostracized the Mexicans and African-Americans even more (Guither). The government was showing its citizens a lot of absurd marijuana propaganda, which was false and misinformed. This wrongly scared the hell out of American citizens. Anslinger, a legislator, was building his career on making opiates and cocaine illegal. However these two drugs were not enough to build his career, so he included marijuana in his list of drugs to make illegal (Guither). He succeeded by exploiting the misinformed fears of the American citizens. The fact that marijuana is still illegal is embarrassing to our backwards country; we need to change that old, out dated, ignorant law. Marijuana should not be illegal; it is illegal for wrong reasons and it is time for a change. 

Marijuana should be legalized in a medicinal sense because it has many positive effects on the health. Hugh Hempel discusses how his 11-year-old daughters are undergoing treatment for the genetic disease, Niemann-Pick Type C (Hempel). The treatment does not help, and may even cause seizures that marijuana can potentially help stop (Hempel). Marijuana should be legalized medicinally, so these two young girls can live easier without seizures and pain. Marijuana can also be used as a pain reliever and a sleep-aid (Doheny). People can be more comfortable and actually healthier if it has these effects on them. Additionally, Marijuana can also help the food intake of those suffering from HIV and anorexia as well as slow the growth of or even kill cancer cells ("Marijuana and Cancer", 2015). Andrew Monte writes, "Marijuana likely has anti-inflammatory effects and may benefit some patients with inflammatory bowel disease "(Monte), which shows yet another medical ailment that can be helped with marijuana use. This is a huge factor considered when arguing about the legalization of cannabis. Millions of people suffer from cancer in the United States alone. Not only can marijuana help the cancer go away, it can also make the painful chemo treatment easier on the patients. Marijuana has numerous health benefits that can help many people suffering from a whole range of medical conditions, from HIV to cancer to anorexia. 

Marijuana is a safer alternative and substitute in comparison to all other drugs. Marijuana is safer than already legalized drugs like alcohol and tobacco (Jacques). This shows that drug legalization has nothing to with safety and health. Marijuana has a very low risk of abuse because it is not a physically addictive substance (Jacques). This is a very important thing to consider because it shows that usage will not get out of control if it the drug is legalized. No one has ever died from an overdose due to the use of marijuana (Jacques). If marijuana is not as physically damaging as other legal substances, why is it still illegal? Clearly, the well being of the citizens has nothing to do with it. The benefits of illegal marijuana products are absent because so many people still use the substance. The War on Drugs has been a disaster and has failed miserably. Legalization of marijuana will just simply not lead to an increase in use (Poindexter). In just 20 years, alcohol use and tobacco use of minors are at an all time low (Poindexter). This shows that the United States government is capable of reducing the use of already legal drugs, alcohol and tobacco, for minors, so minors would not be affected as much as one would think. Using Colorado as an example, the state of Colorado's government has done a fantastic job of regulating the use of marijuana by minors (Poindexter). The fact that marijuana is illegal is the cause of the marijuana market having no standards, regulations, or price controls, which is the danger posed towards the citizens of the United States (Poindexter). It is definitely a good idea to legalize marijuana because it would act as a safer substitute than other already legal drugs, it would be a regulated market with standards and price control, and legalization would not cause a significant increase in use.

There are many positive social aspects for legalizing marijuana, like a reduction in domestic crime. Arrests for marijuana possession, a victimless crime, would disappear, so there would be less people incarcerated for a crime that harms no one. There has also been a decrease in traffic accidents and fatalities, violent crimes, burglaries, and property crime in Colorado (McCauley). Marijuana can do great things for the way people act; a reduction in crime and traffic accidents is a very important factor to consider when making up your mind about the legalization of cannabis. This makes lives better for everyone, users of marijuana and nonusers. Prohibition of marijuana has also ruined some people's entire lives due to marijuana possession. This arrest can lead to it being near impossible to get a job. Some may even lose their homes because without a job, there's no money to pay for a house. Marijuana legalization would have numerous social benefits, and marijuana prohibition causes more problems than it solves.

Marijuana should be legalized recreationally for an abundance of reasons. The fact that marijuana is illegal is a direct cause of both domestic and foreign crime. There are currently more arrests for marijuana over any other drug, and there are an absurd number of people in jail for marijuana use, which is a victimless crime ("DEA Statistics and Facts", 2000). Being in jail costs the government a significant amount of money; a decrease in one of the biggest reasons people are in jail would save the government millions of dollars. Around forty percent of American citizens have admitted to using marijuana (Jaqcues). Forty percent is a huge amount of the American population, and it is unrealistic and absolutely insane to think they should all go to prison for that.  If marijuana were legalized police officers could stop wasting hours arresting people for this victimless crime, and focus on more urgent issues, like violent crimes. There is a very small amount of people affected by others' use of marijuana, except for people affected by the cartels in Mexico and other foreign countries. However, if marijuana was legalized recreationally in the United States, users of marijuana would not need to rely on cartels to obtain the drug. In other words, "legal substances can be controlled in ways illegal ones cannot"(Poindexter). Legalization would take the money and control out of the cartels hands and put it in the hands of the government (Jenner). The government could put price controls, standards, and regulations on marijuana sale, so it would be a lot safer for American citizens to buy. The War on Drugs has not succeeded at all to reduce the amount of drug use even though it costs about $51 billion every year (Poindexter). Marijuana legalization could slow down foreign crime considerably by putting and end to marijuana-producing cartels.

Marijuana legalization can also bring in a lot of money for the United States government. If the United States federal government legalizes marijuana, they would be able to tax it, potentially making millions in tax revenue. If marijuana is legalized, then there would also be a large increase of jobs, which boosts the economy. Using just two dispensaries in Denver, Colorado as an example, there has been an increase of 280 jobs, and there has been roughly $30 million in total economic in the span of six months (McCauley). Also, the average wage of a worker is about $17 per hour, which is well above minimum wage (McCauley). That's just from two dispensaries alone! Colorado's Department of Revenue claims that they made $40.9 million in tax revenue from retail marijuana sales in just 10 months, and about 20% of that money was dedicated to drug prevention and education for the states youth (McCauley). If Colorado can make that much money just from marijuana in that short amount of time, imagine how much the federal government could make if it were legal. The potential tax revenue the federal government would obtain from the legalization of marijuana is large; they could potentially make millions. Marijuana legalization has numerous benefits, such as decrease in domestic crime, decrease in foreign crime, increase in tax revenue for the federal government, decrease of people in prison for marijuana possession, decrease of traffic accidents, it is safer than already legal drugs, has a low risk of abuse, and can help with copious amounts of medical ailments. 

Taking all that into consideration, there are many people who think marijuana should be illegal. Marijuana can also be unhealthy to some users, depending on amount of marijuana consumed. In Colorado, there have been an increase of people in the hospital with burns, cyclic vomiting syndrome, and ingestion of edible cannabis products (Monte). Young children have also been admitted to the hospital because of accidental ingestion of edible cannabis products (Monte). Marijuana use is also associated with anxiety, depression, and psychosis (Monte). There have also been increases in hospital visits for people that have ingested too much marijuana (Monte). There are also some people who have real problems with using it in moderation; 4.3 million people have admitted to marijuana abuse or marijuana dependence in Colorado (Hawkins). Amsterdam has legal marijuana, and it has led to an increase in crime around marijuana coffee shops, and an increase in children using marijuana (Hawkins). Chronic marijuana abuse can lead to schizophrenia and a lower IQ (Hawkins). One study done on postal workers shows that those who use marijuana have a higher risk of accidents and missing works (Hawkins). Also, pregnant women who smoke marijuana can give the marijuana birth defects and abnormalities (Hawkins). So there are definitely some reasons for why people might oppose the legalization of marijuana.  

All or most of these claims against the legalization of medicinal and recreational marijuana can be refuted. First of all, those who suffer from adverse health effects due to marijuana usage do not have to use marijuana; if their physical or mental health suffers, it is their own fault for using the drug. If they continue to use the drug despite the negative health effects, they are at fault. Young children should not have access to any marijuana products, and the parents are to blame for that; there should be stricter rules and regulations for parents to keep marijuana in a safe place away from children. For people going to the hospital for ingesting too much marijuana, marijuana dispensaries should have suggested dosages for all users of marijuana, beginners and frequent users. Amsterdam and the United States are two very different countries, and can not be compared accurately because of their differences. Pregnant women should know that they should not be using any mind-altering drugs, so their children are not born with birth defects or abnormalities. There are also many successful rehabilitation facilities and programs out there to help people who abuse or are dependent on marijuana quit and stop using the drug. Out of the millions, possibly billions, of dollars that the federal government would make off of tax revenue of marijuana, there should be some set aside to educate the general public on the possible negative physical and mental health effects of chronic marijuana use. 

Marijuana is a drug naturally grown from the earth that is illegal for the wrong reasons. Marijuana should not still be illegal; it is time to change this ignorant, backwards, out dated, law. Despite there being some possible negative effects of legalizing marijuana, the drug should be legalized for a numerous amount of reasons. Marijuana can help those who suffer from a variety of medical ailments. It can bring an uncountable amount of money to the federal government, while saving the government money from releasing people from prison for possession of marijuana. There will be less people in prison for this victimless crime, which will help people because those arrested will be able to get desirable jobs and make money. There will be a decrease in domestic crime, like violent crimes, property crimes, and drug crimes. There will also be a decrease in foreign crime by putting the cartels out of business. There is a low risk of abuse for marijuana, and it is not nearly as dangerous and damaging as other already legal drugs. There are a few possible negative outcomes from the legalization of marijuana, but the positive outcomes will without a doubt outweigh the negative ones. This is a very important topic to debate on a person to person level and a federal government level. Marijuana should be legalized both recreationally and medicinally.

The legalization of marijuana is a highly debated topic by both the public and the government. It is worthwhile to argue and debate about this topic because it affects every citizen in the United States. This argumentative essay should demonstrate and illustrate why marijuana should be legal. There are many arguments for the legalization of cannabis that help users and nonusers of the drug. The call to action is this: talk about it; spread the word; argue for the legalization with anyone. If the readers of this paper that are convinced to legalize marijuana can convince other people, word will spread like a wildfire. People make the change in this democratic government. The more people for the legalization of marijuana, the more the federal government will listen to us. Marijuana is illegal due to corruption and racism; the government does not think marijuana is a dangerous and damaging drug. Marijuana should be legal; it affects everyone. 

