I oppose legalization of marijuana for many reasons. One of the primary reasons is that marijuana hurts so many people, and worse, it hurts the poor and minorities worst of all. Those who are concerned about growing income inequality, the high incarceration rate of African Americans, and bigotry in general should stand up against legalized marijuana.
JAMA Psychiatry just published a study on the “Prevalence of Marijuana Use and Disorders in the United States” (“Prevalence of Marijuana Use
Disorders in the United States Between 2001-2002 and 2012-2013”, published
online October 21, 2015). The study found that not only did marijuana use and DSM-IV marijuana use disorder nearly double during the decade ending 2013, but this disorder grew by a larger percentage among black individuals and those with the lowest income.
In other words, legalizing marijuana may affect African Americans and the poor more than other populations. What follows are quotes from the study. I added the underlining.
Conclusions
“The prevalence
of marijuana use more than doubled between 2001-2002 and 2012-2013, and
there was a large increase in marijuana use disorders during that time. While
not all marijuana users experience problems, nearly 3 of 10 marijuana users
manifested a marijuana use disorder in 2012-2013.”
How many Americans
are experiencing marijuana use disorder?
“In 2012-2013, 9.52% of US adults used marijuana in the past
year, and 2.9% had a diagnosis of DSM-IV marijuana use disorder. Thus, nearly 3
of every 10 marijuana users had a diagnosis of a marijuana use disorder (approximately
6,846,000 Americans).”
What demographic
groups are most affected?
“The prevalence of DSM-IV marijuana use disorder
increased significantly between 2001-2002 (1.5%) and 2012-2013 (2.9%),
nearly doubling between the 2 surveys (Table 2)…. Groups in which the magnitude of increase
was most notable included those aged 45 to 64 years (0.4% vs 1.3%); black
individuals (1.8% vs 4.6%); Hispanic individuals (1.2% vs 2.8%); those
with the lowest income (2.3% vs 5.4%); and those in the South (1.0% vs
2.6%).”
What are the risks of
marijuana use?
“[U]se or early use of marijuana is associated with
increased risk for many outcomes, including cognitive decline, psychosocial
impairments, vehicle crashes, emergency department visits, psychiatric
symptoms, poor quality of life, use of other drugs, a cannabis-withdrawal
syndrome, and addiction risk. Further, marijuana
use disorders (abuse or dependence) are associated with substantial comorbidity
and disability and are consequently of substantial public health concern."
