Marijuana and Hemp, The Untold

MARIJUANA AND HEMP

THE UNTOLD STORY

The purpose of this brochure is to expose the numerous facts about marijuana and hemp that have been suppressed-facts the government does not want you to know.

Hemp is a plant that can be used to produce thousands of products. Hemp is of the same plant species that produces marijuana; its scientific name is Cannabis Sativa. Hemp has been used for thousands of years to produce products like paper, textiles, oil, rope, and canvas. In fact, the word canvas is derived from the word cannabis. Hemp grown for industrial use is very low in THC (the psychoactive chemical in marijuana), thus making industrial hemp useless as a drug. Although marijuana is most commonly known as a recreational drug, marijuana also has many medicinal uses.

During the 1930s, the American media ran many blatantly-false stories depicting marijuana as an extremely dangerous drug. Because these lies went unchallenged, marijuana and hemp were effectively banned in 1938. Recently, hemp has been rediscovered as a natural resource that has great economic and environmental potential. Marijuana for medicinal use is also gaining renewed recognition. Ironically, as will be explained shortly, it is possible that the real reason marijuana was banned was to prevent hemp from ever becoming a major natural resource. What follows are many astonishing facts about marijuana and hemp-facts that will shock most people.

HEMP: THE WORLD'S MOST BENEFICIAL NATURAL RESOURCE?

AMAZING FACTS ABOUT AN AMAZING PLANT

' On an annual basis, 1 acre of hemp will produce as much fiber as 2 to 3 acres of cotton. Hemp fiber is stronger and softer than cotton, lasts twice as long as cotton, and will not mildew. Many textile products (shirts, jackets, pants, backpacks, etc.) made from 100% hemp are now available.

' Cotton grows only in moderate climates and requires more water than hemp; but hemp is frost tolerant, requires only moderate amounts of water, and grows in all 50 states. Cotton requires large quantities of pesticides and herbicides-50% of the world's pesticides/herbicides are used on cotton. But hemp requires no pesticides, no herbicides, and only moderate amounts of fertilizer.

' On an annual basis, 1 acre of hemp will produce as much paper as 2 to 4 acres of trees. From tissue paper to cardboard, all types of paper products can be produced from hemp. Global demand for paper will double within 25 years. Unless tree-free sources of paper are developed, there is no way to meet future paper demand without causing massive deforestation and environmental damage. Cannabis Hemp is the world's most promising source of tree-free paper.

' The quality of hemp paper is superior to tree-based paper. Hemp paper will last hundreds of years without degrading, can be recycled many more times than tree-based paper, and requires less toxic chemicals in the manufacturing process than does paper made from trees.

' Cannabis Hemp can be used to produce fiberboard that is stronger than wood, lighter than wood, and fire retardant. Substituting hemp fiberboard for timber would further reduce the need to cut down our forests. Hemp can also be used to produce strong, durable and environmentally-friendly plastic substitutes. Thousands of products made from petroleum-based plastics can be produced from hemp-based composites. Mercedes Benz of Germany has recently begun manufacturing automobile bodies and dashboards made from hemp.

' It takes years for trees to grow until they can be harvested for paper or wood, but hemp is ready for harvesting only 120 days after it is planted. Hemp can grow on most land suitable for farming, but forests and tree farms require large tracts of land available in few locations. Harvesting hemp rather than trees would also eliminate erosion due to logging, thereby reducing topsoil loss and water pollution caused by soil runoff.

' Hemp seed oil contains a protein that is as nutritious and more economical to produce than soybean protein. Hemp seeds are not intoxicating. Hemp seed oil/protein can be used to produce virtually any product made from soybean: tofu, veggie burgers, butter, cheese, salad oils, ice cream, milk, etc. Hemp seed can also be ground into a nutritious flour that can be used to produce baked goods such as pasta, cookies, and breads.

' Hemp seed oil can be used to produce non-toxic diesel fuel, paint, varnish, detergent, ink and lubricating oil. Because hemp seeds account for up to half the weight of a mature hemp plant, hemp seed is a viable source for these products.

' Just as corn can be converted into clean-burning ethanol fuel, so can hemp. Because hemp produces more biomass than any plant species (including corn) that can grow in a wide range of climates and locations, hemp has great potential to become a major source of ethanol fuel.

' Literally millions of wild hemp plants currently grow throughout the U.S. Wild hemp, like hemp grown for industrial use, has no drug properties because of its low THC content. U.S. marijuana laws prevent farmers from growing the same hemp plant that proliferates in nature by the millions.

' From 1776 to 1937, hemp was a major American crop and textiles made from hemp were common. Yet, The American Textile Museum, The Smithsonian Institute, and most American history books contain no mention of hemp. The government's War on Marijuana Smokers has created an atmosphere of self censorship-speaking of hemp in a positive manner is considered taboo.

' United States Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson grew hemp, used products made from hemp, and praised the hemp plant in some of their writings. Under the laws written by today's politicians, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson would be considered a threat to society-they would be arrested and thrown in prison for the felony crime of growing plants.

' No other natural resource offers the potential of hemp. Cannabis Hemp is capable of producing significant quantities of paper, textiles, building materials, food, medicine, paint, detergent, varnish, oil, ink, and fuel. Unlike other crops, Cannabis Hemp can grow in most climates and on most farmland throughout the world, with moderate water and fertilizer requirements, no pesticides, and no herbicides. Cannabis Hemp (also known as Indian Hemp) has enormous potential to become a major natural resource that can benefit both the economy and the environment.

' "Make the most you can of the Indian Hemp seed and sow it everywhere."

-President George Washington, 1794

During World War II, the U.S. government urged patriotic American farmers to grow'

Hemp For Victory

Fibers needed to make rope, textiles and other materials were in such short supply during World War II, the U.S. government temporarily re-legalized hemp cultivation so American farmers could grow it for the war effort. Although the government allowed more than 350,000 acres (550 square miles) of hemp to be cultivated during World War II, the U.S. experienced no increase in marijuana use during that period.

Left: Introduction to the U.S. government's 1942 pro-hemp film titled Hemp For Victory.

Right: A farmer inspects his 8-foot-tall hemp crop, which is nearly ready to harvest.

The surrounding images are from the 1942 U.S. Dept. of Agriculture film titled Hemp For Victory, which was used to educate American farmers about growing hemp for the war effort. This film portrays the hemp plant in a very positive light. For years the government denied it made this film, and records of its existence in The Library of Congress were mysteriously missing. But in 1989, after an exhaustive search of government archives, researchers uncovered the original library records which prove Hemp For Victory was produced by the U.S. government. Video cassette tapes of Hemp For Victory are now available for sale to the public. (See Page 11 for ordering information.)

Left: A Marijuana Tax Stamp permitted American farmers to grow hemp during World War II.

Right: A Wisconsin farmer harvests his hemp crop in September.

DO HEMP ADVOCATES HAVE AN AGENDA TO

RE-LEGALIZE MARIJUANA?

Many prohibitionists discredit the need for a hemp industry because they fear hemp is being used as a vehicle to re-legalize marijuana. The facts must be judged on their own merit. The economic and environmental benefits of hemp are very real. There are literally thousands of American farmers who want to grow industrial hemp. The repeal of Hemp Prohibition is also advocated by numerous major farm organizations, including the conservative 4.5-million-member American Farm Bureau. Many businesses are now producing hemp-based products and some large American corporations (International Paper, Inc.) are beginning to advocate the repeal of Hemp Prohibition.

It is entirely possible to repeal Hemp Prohibition without re-legalizing marijuana because Cannabis Hemp grown for industrial use has no drug properties. China and Eastern European nations are the world's leading growers of Cannabis Hemp, but marijuana is still illegal in those nations. Although marijuana is illegal in Canada, England, Germany, and Australia, those nations have recently begun growing Cannabis Hemp for the first time in decades. If the United States does not repeal Hemp Prohibition, a significant economic and environmental opportunity will be lost-the benefits will be reaped only by America's economic competitors.

MARIJUANA AS MEDICINE: FACTS THE GOVERNMENT IGNORES

The DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) classifies marijuana as a dangerous drug with no medical value. That classification contradicts mounds of evidence showing marijuana to be a very safe and effective medicine. Marijuana is more effective, much less expensive, and much safer than many drugs currently used in its place. Marijuana can provide superb relief for those who suffer from cancer, AIDS, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, arthritis, rheumatism, asthma, insomnia, and depression. If knowledge of marijuana's many medicinal uses, its remarkable safety, and hemp's enormous potential as a natural resource become widely known, the DEA fears that support for Marijuana Prohibition will collapse, and thus threaten the DEA's budget. To maintain the myth that marijuana/hemp is useless and dangerous, the DEA prohibits the medicinal use of marijuana, denies researchers access to marijuana for use in clinical studies, and rejects all applications to grow industrial hemp. In 1988-after reviewing all evidence brought forth in a lawsuit against the government's prohibition of medical marijuana-the DEA's own administrative law judge (Judge Francis Young) wrote:

"The evidence in this record clearly shows that marijuana has been accepted as capable of relieving the distress of great numbers of very ill people, and doing so with safety under medical supervision. It would be unreasonable, arbitrary and capricious for the Drug Enforcement Administration to continue to stand between those sufferers and the benefits of this substance in light of the evidence." Judge Francis Young of the Drug Enforcement Administration went on to say:

"Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known. In strict medical terms, marijuana is safer than many foods we commonly consume." Judge Young recommended that the DEA allow marijuana to be prescribed as medicine, but the DEA has refused.

Although the federal government claims marijuana has no appropriate medicinal use, the federal government contradicts itself by supplying government-grown, FDA-approved marijuana cigarettes to 8 seriously ill Americans remaining from its discontinued medical marijuana program. The federal government closed its medical marijuana program to new patients in 1992 after the AIDS epidemic created a flood of new applicants. In November 1996, California voters approved an initiative (Proposition 215) that re-legalizes the personal use and cultivation of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

MARIJUANA / HEMP WAS LEGAL, WHY WAS IT BANNED?

For the first 162 years of America's existence, marijuana was totally legal and hemp was a common crop. But during the 1930s, the U.S. government and the media began spreading outrageous lies about marijuana, which led to its prohibition. Some headlines made about marijuana in the 1930s were: "Marijuana: The assassin of youth." "Marijuana: The devil's weed with roots in hell." "Marijuana makes fiends of boys in 30 days." "If the hideous monster Frankenstein came face to face with the monster marijuana, he would drop dead of fright." In 1936, the liquor industry funded the infamous movie titled Reefer Madness. This movie depicts a man going insane from smoking marijuana, and then killing his entire family with an ax. This campaign of lies, as well as other evidence, have led many to believe there may have been a hidden agenda behind Marijuana Prohibition.

Shortly before marijuana was banned by The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, new technologies were developed that made hemp a potential competitor with the newly-founded synthetic fiber and plastics industries. Hemp's potential for producing paper also posed a threat to the timber industry (see New Billion-Dollar Crop, pages 6-7). Evidence suggests that commercial interests having much to lose from hemp competition helped propagate reefer madness hysteria, and used their influence to lobby for Marijuana Prohibition. It is not known for certain if special interests conspired to destroy the hemp industry via Marijuana Prohibition, but enough evidence exists to raise the possibility.

After Alcohol Prohibition ended in 1933, funding for the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (now the Drug Enforcement Administration) was reduced. The FBN's own director, Harry J. Anslinger, then became a leading advocate of Marijuana Prohibition. In 1937 Anslinger testified before Congress in favor of Marijuana Prohibition by saying: "Marijuana is the most violence causing drug in the history of mankind. Most marijuana smokers 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 Negroes." Marijuana Prohibition is founded on lies and rooted in racism, prejudice, and ignorance. Just as politicians believed Harry Anslinger to be a marijuana expert in 1937, many people still believe law enforcement officials are marijuana experts. In reality, law enforcement officials have no expert knowledge of marijuana's medical or health effects, but they do represent an industry that receives billions of tax dollars to enforce Prohibition.

Before the government began promoting reefer madness hysteria during the 1930s, the word marijuana was a Mexican ...

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