“Marijuana has a complicated legal, social, and economic history in the United States, as well as an uncertain future. Marijuana has been consistently tied to racial minority groups since its arrival in the United States in the 1900s, and former Attorney General Jeff Sessions further propagated that notion. AG Sessions even recently wrote a memo that directly contradicted Obama-era policy, demonstrating that the current legal status of marijuana in both state and federal government is currently up for debate. While several states have legalized marijuana for medical or even recreational purposes, federal law still categorizes cannabis as a drug with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. The comparison between marijuana, opioids, and ketamine in this article demonstrates that marijuana has been unnecessarily withheld and stigmatized by the federal government. Also reviewed is the impact of stringent marijuana-based legal policies upon the racial makeup of prison populations. The implications of current policy upon potential and future research are also discussed, with the determination that current policy has stymied research and prevented a more accurate determination of the risks and benefits of medical marijuana.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30593477
“Cannabis was initially marked as Schedule I for reasons related to race and class. The federal government has restricted access to marijuana on the basis of its unknown risks and lack of proven benefits despite the fact that synthetic cannabinoids have been demonstrated to elicit FDA-approved benefits. This article demonstrates that marijuana should be removed from the Schedule I listing, as would be consistent with the labeling of ketamine and opioids, and reclassified as a Schedule III or Schedule II drug. Given the beneficial medical use, possible side effects, and potential for abuse and addiction of each drug, medical cannabis has been unfairly kept from the public through its unnecessary classification as a Schedule I drug.”