Our Cup of

Tea
Painful Prohibition: Alleviating Societal
Costs Through the Legalization of Marijuana
Ishan Phadke

April 17, 2016

Introduction
Alberto Willmore was a proud arts teacher at a school in downtown
New York City. He was adored by all the students and teachers in his
school as he was one of the founders of the school too. Many students
during an investigation of his case described him as their most influential
teacher and a role model. Alberto Willmore used to draw pictures on the
sidewalk with chalk outside his home for the public to enjoy everyday. One
day, he was smoking while drawing his picture. After walking to the edge
of the curb, he proceeded to throw his cigarette at the grate in the street. It
was after he turned around, he heard the screech of tires and a car door
slam. He was subsequently slammed against a fence and was told to
remain silent. The officer then walked over to the grate and picked up one
of the many cigarettes around the grate and told Alberto that he was being
arrested for marijuana possession. The following day, he was notified that
he had been suspended by the school district. For two years he had to go
through multiple court sessions all while being unemployed. After two
years, his case was dismissed due to insufficient evidence and his criminal
charges were removed. However, his possession of marijuana wasnt
stricken from his record and as a result was not able to get his job back at
his beloved school district even though his case had been dismissed.
Albertos life changed the day he was arrested for possession and it would
never be the same. In the words of Alberto, They took my life. They took

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what I love to do the most.1 Currently marijuana use and possession is

prohibited in the United States. This prohibition is incurring large social
costs on society that have affected a significant amount of people besides
Alberto. While he was fortunate to avoid jail time, others were not. These
costs range from an inefficient use of resources, unreasonable
punishments, and racism. This country has endured these costs for too
long and there is no need for them to continue taking their toll on the
public. Ending the prohibition of marijuana will effectively in turn end these
harmful costs that are currently being imposed while even allowing
benefits to multiple components of society. For the first time, the general
public also agrees. Over 50% of individuals believe that marijuana should
be legalized.2 With more support than ever and a few states leading the
charge, its time to end the prohibition of marijuana.

Costs of Enforcing Criminalization

The legalization of marijuana will result in the end of the large
devastating social costs the prohibition of marijuana currently causes.
These costs are substantial and result in severe, often long term
consequences for the individual and society as well. One clear example is
the misuse of law enforcement in general on cases related to Marijuana.
Too many police officers and man hours are spent cracking down on
marijuana users. According to an article by the New York Times, with data
from the FBI, a total of 658,000 arrests were made for marijuana in 2012.3
This is a staggering number in relation to the other drugs in marijuanas
class 1 drug classification. All the other drugs in that class such as heroin,
cocaine, and other counterparts only totaled for 250,000 arrests that year,
substantially less than the arrest total for marijuana. That same year
roughly 520,000 arrests were made in relation to violent crimes.4 The fact
that more arrests and therefore more man-hours were spent on marijuana
arrests in comparison to violent crime is ridiculous. The time spent on
these arrests takes time away from being spent on meaningful cases that
will help society become a better place.
There are also enormous costs associated with enforcing the current
laws against marijuana. After the police have spent a few hours making the
arrest for a marijuana related crime, the arrested user will typically spend a

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few nights in a jail cell and be required to make multiple court

appearances to resolve his/her case. This not only costs resources like
time, but also costs a large amount of money per year. According to the
American Civil Liberties Union, the costs solely associated with enforcing
laws on marijuana possession cost roughly 3.6 billion every year.5 These
exorbitant costs exist because marijuana has been criminalized and could
be used towards solving more urgent matters if marijuana was legal. It can
be seen that the legalization of marijuana will allow police officers and law
enforcement to stop wasting time and spend it on more severe drug
cases, or towards solving more relevant cases, such as violent ones, over
which half were left unsolved. The taxpayers have paid these unnecessary
costs of enforcing the criminalization of marijuana for too long and its time
for a change.

Infographic comparing costs of enforcement to health costs per the most popular drugs

Aside from costs to law enforcements there are also serious social
costs to those who are caught and arrested for marijuana possession. A
majority of the people who have used marijuana are lawful citizens who
have simply been booked for the minor drug offense. Minor offenses like
possession result in fines ranging above 1000 dollars and the possibility of
jail time ranging from one to five years. While it is understandable that the
punishment for selling and distributing marijuana can result in 20-plus
years in prison, its unfair that something as petty as possession for
personal use can result in that much jail time. A few years in prison can
negatively affect a persons life. His/her time in prison will set them behind
significantly in life and could ruin it as well. The fact that a single marijuana

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possession stays on a persons permanent record doesnt help either. This

stands out on an individuals record and makes it increasingly difficult for
the person to apply for jobs or even get a loan. In comparison to alcohol,
which is still illegal for people under 21, the consequences are much
harsher for marijuana. This is extremely unfair considering that underage
citations for alcohol can be removed from a permanent record, essentially
absolving the person of any future consequences associated with it which
is unavailable to those caught with marijuana. There is no reason that
marijuana should be punished more than alcohol is considering they are
both illegal for those under 21. The legalization of marijuana will result in
less crowding in jails, which is a major concern in the United States, as
cells wont be wasted for individuals who were experimenting with drugs
and will eliminate the harsh social costs a person endures after being
arrested for marijuana.
Another reason that marijuana was criminalized was the fact that the
people behind the ban of marijuana argued there would be benefits to
criminalizing it. Through unbiased research anyone can see that there are
no benefits to continue criminalizing marijuana. On the contrary there are
many reasons that support an end to criminalization with one being the
war on drugs. The War on Drugs was an attempt to curb the amount of
many drugs making their way into the United States and in the process
limiting the use of drugs in this country as well. Not only has this war been
highly ineffective, but also it has been extremely expensive every year. The
War on Drugs costs taxpayers roughly 51 billion dollars every year, and
has totaled roughly 1 trillion altogether, in an attempt to combat increased
drug usage.7 Statistics have shown that during the last 3 decades, when
the war on drugs was in full force, the same amount of Americans, roughly
30 million still use marijuana every year.8 Despite the government putting
their resources into limiting the use of marijuana, people continue to use it.
Similar results were seen during the prohibition of alcohol and after the
government saw the ineffectiveness fighting to maintain prohibition, it
lessened its efforts against the ban and eventually the prohibition was
lifted. If marijuana was legalized, the social costs associated with the war
on drugs, and all of that taxpayer money could be used to fund other
projects to address the rest of our societys needs.

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The proponents behind the criminalization of marijuana also believed

marijuana influenced a life of crime. This unproved theory is based of the
assumption that people who use marijuana are more likely to lead a life of
crime. As a result of this, it has been argued that arresting people who use
marijuana will then in turn prevent them from committing a future crime.
The Human Rights Watch conducted a study where they collected data
from first time marijuana offenders with no prior convictions to test this
theory. Of 30,000 New York residents who were arrested for marijuana
possession for the first time, over 90% of them did not get any felony
convictions afterwards.9 Other smaller studies also have similar results and
from them it can be concluded that there is no correlation between
marijuana and people going on to commit other crimes. Anyways, it is
unethical to support arresting them with just the belief that they may go on
to commit a crime. It can bee seen that this is an incredibly poorly made
theory with no evidence to back it up. Since there are no plausible reasons
that support the criminalization of marijuana, there is no reason the public
should continue to deal with the costs of enforcing prohibition.

Racial Backgrounds and Costs

The reason why marijuana was made illegal in the first place actually
was not about how harmful of a drug it was claimed to be, but in fact it
had to with racism towards Mexicans. In the early 1930s after the Great
Depression, there was an influx of Mexican immigrants that were making
their way into America.10 People were concerned about the number of
immigrants coming in and were wary of the new customs they brought
along with them. One of these customs was the use of the drug
marihuana, which was dubbed marijuana by Americans. Other minority
groups such as African Americans also used the drug. Because of this,
people tied their distrust of minorities towards marijuana. As a result, there
was a move to make marijuana illegal, which was solely based off
prejudices against Mexicans and other minority groups. The true purpose
of the ban on marijuana was meant to combat the amount of immigration
by minorities.11 However, to gain support for this, the general population,
typically white individuals, started claiming that marijuana led to violent
behavior and was otherwise harmful. One of the biggest advocates of

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banning marijuana and first commissioner of the U.S Treasury

Departments Federal Bureau of Narcotics, Henry Anslinger, stated, There
are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the United States, and most are
Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz
and swing, result from marijuana usage. This marijuana causes white
women to seek sexual relations with them.12 As a result of all the people
against marijuana paired with rash claims of its dangerous effects, the
government banned marijuana in 1937.13 After the ban, the New York
Academy of Medicine released a report stating that there was no evidence
relating marijuana to violence and other harmful effects that people had
claimed it did.14 It can be clearly seen that the motives behind banning
marijuana were purely racist and had nothing to do with the drug itself.
Even today there are still racist components to marijuana. The War
on Drugs has unfairly targeted minority groups and killed more civilians
than the war on terror.15 Studies have shown that minorities are more often
targeted in comparison towards whites when it comes to cracking down
on marijuana use despite Gallup polls showing that there is no difference
between the number of whites and minorities who have tried marijuana.16
Therefore, it is unfair that minorities are targeted more. It can be argued
that the drug war and increased targeting doubles as a hindrance to the
economic mobility of minorities. Since marijuana was prohibited solely
based on racist grounds, there is no reason that it should continue to be
banned and the legalization of it will end the racist measures it has
caused. Supporting the ban on marijuana is supporting racism as well,
which is a component of society that people are trying to eliminate and the
legalization of marijuana will free society of that cost.

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RACIAL IMBALANCE IN ARRESTS: ODDS A

BLACK INDIVIDUAL IS ARRESTED FOR
MARJUNANA POSSESION COMPARED TO A
WHITE INDIVIDUAL
1-2 times more
likely
6%

No difference
2%

6-8+ times more

likely
12%
4-6 times more
likely
23%

2-4 times more

likely
57%

Average odds for United States

arrests are 3.7 times more likely. DC is
included as a state in this graphic.

Chart comparing the racial imbalance in arrests in various states across America in relation to Marijuana Arrests.
Source NY Times

17

Benefits to Society (Positive Costs)

Colorado and Washington were the first two states where marijuana
was legalized and now a few others are following suit.18 Their legal
cannabis experiment has been successful in many measures. The biggest
success that has emerged through legalization has been the large tax
revenue being brought in through marijuana sales.19 This tax revenue being
brought in is now going to the government instead of going to the black
market where it had been and continues to go to in other states.20 These
millions of dollars are being used by the government to fund public school
districts. If more states followed suit, they could also use this increase in
tax revenue towards funding projects that they need funding for. Overall,
after legalizing marijuana, many aspects of life in Colorado have also
improved. Automobile accidents, reported violence and overall crime has
decreased since legalization.21 While there is no evidence that legalization
is the main cause behind this, the fact that these improvements to society
have only occurred around the time legalization occurred cant merely be a
coincidence.
People against legalizing marijuana argue that the use of marijuana
will increase after legalization. Early statistics in Colorado actually show
that this is not the case. The percentage of teens who use marijuana has in
fact declined ever since cannabis was legalized in Colorado.22 One belief
the percentage of teens using may have declined may be because of the

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rebellious nature of teens. Due to the fact that marijuana was illegal, some
teens may have thought it was cool to do it just because it was illegal, and
it was a way for them to be rebellious. Another reason that the amount of
teens using could have declined is the fact that legal substances can be
controlled in ways that illegal ones cant be. Through effective mandatory
minimum age laws and marketing campaigns the percentage of teens
using alcohol has dropped by 10% in the last 20 years.23 Similar methods
are being used to reduce the number of teen users in states where
marijuana has been legalized and have had success so far.
The only negative effect of legalizing marijuana appears to be
increased hospitalization of children from getting their hands on edibles
and getting sick off of them.24 This is a problem resulting from parental
negligence and not because marijuana was legalized. In order to address
this issue, the government has started to regulate the sale and labelling of
THC products. The minimum age to purchase and use marijuana has been
set at 21 and studies have shown that nearly all stores that were evaluated
were serious about the age requirement.25 The required labelling of edibles
that contain THC and limits to the content in each of them has also been
implemented. Portions of the tax revenue are also being used to fund
research to study the effects of marijuana and on youth prevention and
education.26 It can be seen that certain states have reaped beneficial
results after the legalization of marijuana and now is the time for the whole
country to get them as well.

Health and Safety Comparisons

Another huge reason in support of legalization is the fact that
marijuana is safer than alcohol by far. The dangers behind alcohol surpass
the dangers associated with marijuana yet alcohol is a legal substance in
the United States. Every year roughly 88,000 people die from alcohol
related reasons, making it one of the top preventable deaths in America.27
This is an alarming number that is caused by a permitted substance. In
comparison, there have been no deaths linked specifically to marijuana
overdose or abuse.28 There were 2 cases related to edibles playing a role
in the deaths of 2 separate individuals in Colorado; however, multiple
drugs were found in both autopsy reports, so marijuana cant be

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considered the main cause of death.29 It simply makes no sense how a

drug that cannot be abused and cant lead to death is banned while one
that does is permitted.
Marijuana is also significantly less addictive compared to tobacco
and alcohol which is another reason it can be argued that its safer.
Reports have shown that marijuana contains no addictive substances like
nicotine and as a result, its easier for users to quit if they choose to do
so.30 There is also the claim that marijuana is considered a gateway drug,
which is a drug that leads users towards harder drugs such as heroin and
cocaine. Studies done by the University of Pittsburgh have shown that this
theory is in fact false, and no correlation between marijuana and other
drugs existed.31 Studies have also shown theres a better chance that
alcohol and tobacco correlated to the harder substances than marijuana.32
This once again begs the question as to why alcohol and tobacco are
permitted while marijuana is not.
The behavior of individuals under the influence of marijuana is also
very different in comparison to alcohol. In contrast to initial claims that
marijuana incites violent behavior, it actually leads to users being typically
happy and mild; whereas, alcohol has been known to cause aggressive
behavior.33 As it can be easily seen, marijuana is the safer drug between
alcohol and tobacco, yet it is the only one that is banned. There is no
reason that marijuana should stay classified with the other hard drugs and
if the other two are legal, it only makes sense that marijuana is legalized as
well. The prohibition of marijuana pushes drug users towards the legal
choices which in fact are more harmful thus incurring more negative costs
to societys members. There is simply no reason why society should
continue to incur these costs and the repeal of the prohibition is the
easiest way to guarantee that.

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10

Infographic detailing various benefits to society after legalization. Source: Students of Liberty

34

Conclusion:
For the last 80 years, American society has been burdened with the
heavy damaging costs that have stemmed from maintaining the misguided
prohibition of marijuana. Individuals such as Alberto Willmore and
countless others have suffered during that span. Enough is enough and
these costs simply need to stop affecting this nation. The government has
been wasting tax payer money in pointless quests, innocent civilians have
died, racism has continued to flourish strongly, while peoples lives have
been ruined through arrests and jail time and the list goes on. How many
more generations need to suffer the same fate? There is absolutely no
need for the future generations to suffer these ridiculous costs as well.
Now is the time to start reaping the positive benefits marijuana could
bring, instead of dealing with the unnecessary costs that prohibition brings
and the path to legalization is quite feasible. Certain states have already
voiced their opposition to the federal ban by legalizing it within their own
borders. Either more states can continue this trend or the Federal
Government itself could end the ban by passing a law to decriminalize
marijuana and legalize it once and for all.35 Either course of action is not
difficult to achieve and would work. Its time to free society of the burdens
it has had to endure this past century by legalizing marijuana once and for
all.

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11

Endnotes
1. Dresner, Julie. "How A Small-Time Marijuana Arrest Has Devastated A Great
Teacher's Life." BuzzFeed. December 8, 2013. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/jdressner/a-marijuana-arrest#.nxGq30K44v.
2. Jones, Jeffrey. "In U.S., 58% Back Legal Marijuana Use." Gallup.com. October 21,
2015. Accessed April 16, 2016. http://www.gallup.com/poll/186260/back-legalmarijuana.aspx.
3.Poindexter, Owen. "6 Powerful Reasons to Legalize Marijuana, From the New York
Times." Alternet. July 31, 2014. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.alternet.org/drugs/6-powerful-reasons-new-york-times-says-endmarijuana-prohibition.
4. FBI. "Persons Arrested." FBI. 2013. Accessed April 15, 2016.
https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.2012/persons-arrested.
5. Wegman, Jesse. "The Injustice of Marijuana Arrests." The New York Times. July 28,
2014. Accessed April 15, 2016. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/29/opinion/hightime-the-injustice-of-marijuana-arrests.html?opinion-series.
6. Thomas, Gerald, and Chris Davis. "Cost to Society." Digital image. Poli-Tik-Tok.
November 30, 2015. Accessed April 17, 2016. https://politiktoc.wordpress.com/.
7. Drug Policy Alliance. "Drug War Statistics." Drug War Statistics. 2015. Accessed
April 17, 2016. http://www.drugpolicy.org/drug-war-statistics.
8. Wegman, The Injustice of Marijuana Arrests.
9. Ibid.
10. Burnett, Malik, and Amanda Reiman. "How Did Marijuana Become Illegal in the
First Place?" Drug Policy Alliance. October 9, 2014. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/blog/how-did-marijuana-become-illegal-first-place.
11 Ibid.
12. Guither, Pete. "Why Is Marijuana Illegal?" Drug WarRant. 2016. Accessed April 15,
2016. http://www.drugwarrant.com/articles/why-is-marijuana-illegal/.
13. Staples, Brent. "The Federal Marijuana Ban Is Rooted in Myth and Xenophobia."
The New York Times. July 29, 2014. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/30/opinion/high-time-federal-marijuana-ban-isrooted-in-myth.html?opinion-series.

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12

14. WGBH Educational Foundation. "Marijuana Timeline." PBS. 2014. Accessed April
15, 2016. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/dope/etc/cron.html.
15. Wegman, The Injustice of Marijuana Arrests.
16. Saad, Lydia. "In U.S., 38% Have Tried Marijuana, Little Changed Since '80s."
Gallup.com. August 2, 2013. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/163835/tried-marijuana-little-changed-80s.aspx.
17. Wegman, The Injustice of Marijuana Arrests.
18. Firestone, David. "Let States Decide on Marijuana." The New York Times. July 26,
2014. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/27/opinion/sunday/high-time-let-states-decide-onmarijuana.html?opinion-series.
19. Basu, Tanya. "Colorado Raised More Tax Revenue From Marijuana Than Alcohol."
Time. September 16, 2015. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://time.com/4037604/colorado-marijuana-tax-revenue/.
20. Downes, Lawrence. "The Great Colorado Weed Experiment." The New York Times.
August 02, 2014. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/03/opinion/sunday/high-time-the-great-coloradoweed-experiment.html?opinion-series.
21. Ibid.
22. Poindexter, "6 Powerful Reasons to Legalize Marijuana, From the New York
Times."
23. Boffey, Philip. "What Science Says About Marijuana." The New York Times. July
30, 2014. Accessed April 15, 2016. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/31/opinion/whatscience-says-about-marijuana.html?opinion-series.
24. Healy, Jack. "After 5 Months of Sales, Colorado Sees the Downside of a Legal
High." The New York Times. May 31, 2014. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/01/us/after-5-months-of-sales-colorado-sees-thedownside-of-a-legal-high.html.
25. Firestone, "Let States Decide on Marijuana."
26. Bajaj, Vikas. "Rules for the Marijuana Market." The New York Times. August 04,
2014. Accessed April 15, 2016. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/05/opinion/hightime-rules-for-the-marijuana-market.html?opinion-series.

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27. CDC. "Fact Sheets - Alcohol Use and Your Health." Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. February 29, 2016. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/alcohol-use.htm.
28. Marijuana Policy Project. "Marijuana Is Safer Than Alcohol: It's Time To Treat It
That Way - MPP." MPP. 2016. Accessed April 15, 2016.
https://www.mpp.org/marijuana-is-safer-than-alcohol-its-time-to-treat-it-that-way/.
29. Firestone, "Let States Decide on Marijuana."
30. Boffey, "What Science Says About Marijuana."
31. University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. "Study Says Marijuana No Gateway Drug ScienceBlog.com." ScienceBlogcom. December 04, 2006. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://scienceblog.com/12116/study-says-marijuana-no-gateway-drug/.
32. Boffey, "What Science Says About Marijuana."
33. Marijuana Policy Project, Marijuana is Safer Than Alcohol:
34. Students for Liberty. "Marijuana in Colorado." Digital image. 9gag. 2016. Accessed
April 17, 2016. http://9gag.com/gag/a49QAgQ/infographic-marijuana-in-colorado.
35.The Editorial Board. "The New York Times Calls for Marijuana Legalization." The
New York Times. 2014. Accessed April 15, 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/07/27/opinion/sunday/high-time-marijuanalegalization.html?action=click.