Spotlight:

You are here: Home > Spotlight > Marijuana Decriminalization: The Legal Battle over Pot

Debate on Decriminalization

This section briefly examines the debate on the decriminalization of marijuana possession. In particular, this section examines the following:

• General arguments for and against decriminalization
• Marijuana as a gateway drug
• Important links for further information

Arguments For and Against Decriminalization

• Arguments supporting decriminalization include:

  • Marijuana use in Canada is a norm: 23% of Canadians report using marijuana in their lifetime.
  • The scientific evidence indicates that cannabis is substantially less harmful than alcohol and should be treated not as a criminal issue but as a social and public health issue.
  • Most resources are now directed at law enforcement, when they could be better spent on the public health and education aspects of marijuana use and addiction.
  • Most of those convicted of possession of marijuana do not go to jail, but do receive a criminal record. A criminal record causes employment difficulties and problems with international travel.
    
    

• Arguments against decriminalization include:

  • When illicit drugs are legalized, drug use increases
  • Marijuana is a gateway drug to harder drugs
  • Decriminalization would send conflicting messages to young people
  • Concern expressed by United States drug enforcement officials that relaxing Canadian marijuana laws would increase the likelihood of more marijuana flowing south across the border.

Marijuana as a Gateway Drug

An important issue in the decriminalization debate is the relationship between marijuana use and addiction to harder drugs such as crack and heroin. In the past, marijuana has been called a stepping-stone drug. Harder drug abuse begins with marijuana use. However, the stepping-stone theory has been rejected through scientific study.

Instead, the evidence tends to suggest that marijuana is a gateway drug. This gateway theory focuses on the user’s environment and behavior rather that the drug itself. The theory asserts that some marijuana users have the same personality profiles as those who abuse harder drugs. Further, by engaging in marijuana use, these persons are put into social situations where they are more likely to be exposed to harder drug use and acceptance. In other words, people do not become addicted to harder drugs by using marijuana. Instead, some persons tend to have a predisposition to drug abuse. By using marijuana, these persons are exposed to social situations in which this predisposition is more likely to be encouraged.

It is important to note that the gateway theory is not only restricted to marijuana. Other soft drugs, such as alcohol and tobacco, are also identified as the first “gate” through which almost all illicit drug users pass.

The gateway theory has important implications for the decriminalization debate:

• There is an indirect link between marijuana use and hard drug use. Therefore, there needs to be some restriction on marijuana.
• However, it is not marijuana itself that is the problem, but the personality of some users and the social situations in which they find themselves when buying and using marijuana. Thus, if a society is looking to curb drug use, criminalization and harsh penalties for marijuana possession may not be the solution.

Important Links

Marijuana Party of Canada
Canadian Association of Police Chiefs
Cannabis and the Gateway Hypothesis
Drug Policy Alliance
Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy

Next >>
American Position on Canadian Liberalization

© 2001-2006 Maple Leaf Web.
All Rights Reserved

This page was last modified: August 10, 2007