Why do Americans support or oppose cannabis legalization?
We have heard a plethora of arguments on both sides since the issue entered the public debate—many politicians and activists have put forth religious, moral or economic reasons to legalize or criminalize cannabis—but it can be hard to clearly determine which ones prevail. In its latest poll on the subject, Gallup sought to clarify this by asking respondents not just what their views are, but why they hold these views.
The first obvious conclusion is how popular cannabis legalization has become, with 64% of respondents openly supporting it. “Gallup has documented a sharp increase in the percentage of Americans favoring legal marijuana in the past decade, from 44% in 2009 to 64% in the current survey. In 1969, the first time Gallup polled on the issue, just 12% were in favor of legalizing marijuana,” the study reads.
Proponents Care About Health, Justice, Freedom
The first, almost unanimous reason in favor of legal marijuana is its medical uses; 86% of respondents ranked it highest in importance. Roughly 2/3rds of Americans currently have access to legal medical marijuana for this reason, but not every person who could benefit from it has access to cannabis in states where it is exclusively available through medical dispensaries.
A recent study, published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, found that a majority of people who purchase so-called “recreational” marijuana use it to self-medicate. “[In Colorado,] of 1,000 adult-use-only customer respondents, 65% reported taking cannabis to relieve pain, and 74% reported taking cannabis to promote sleep,” according to the author, Marcus Bachhuber. Among the respondents, 82-88% who used traditional pain or sleep medication “reported reducing or stopping the use of those medications.” Decreased use of traditional medicine (such as opioids) when cannabis is available as an alternative is a well-documented trend.
Proponents of legalization also named other key arguments for their support. In order of importance, they mentioned freeing up police resources to focus on other crimes, respecting people’s personal freedom and generating tax revenue for state and local governments. A minority also said that marijuana would be safer for all if it is regulated by the government.
Opponents Concerned About Safety
The first reason invoked by opponents of legalization is road safety. “It would increase the number of car accidents involving drivers who use marijuana,” according to 79% of respondents who think it is of the highest importance. This belief, however, goes against primary data obtained in Colorado.
A report about the concrete impact of cannabis legalization was released by that state’s government in October 2018. It determined that “DUI cases overall were down 15% from 2014 to 2017,” and “the percentage of citations with marijuana-only impairment has stayed steady at around 7%.” The number of trained drug recognition experts saw a 66% increase to make roads safer after cannabis became legal. The Colorado Division of Criminal Justice adds that “about 10% of people in treatment for a DUI self-reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse, compared to 86% who reported alcohol as their primary drug of abuse.” Depending on the state and year, DUI cases involving marijuana use rise and fall, seemingly indicating that legalization has little impact on DUI cases.
Opponents of legal cannabis also believe that legalization “would lead to more people using stronger and more addictive drugs” and “encourage more people to use marijuana.” This seemingly doesn’t take into account that roughly half of the American population has already tried marijuana, as it is the most commonly used illicit drug. Legal marijuana does not push more people to try it for the first time, it simply makes an already established use legal and safer. As the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice puts it, “Colorado is not experiencing an increase in youth usage of marijuana.”
Coming dead last is the belief that the use of drugs, including marijuana, is immoral, despite the fact it is one of the most prominent talking points associated with the fight against legalization.
