ETA: I guess I was a bit more interested in the history of marijuana legalization in the U.S. that I had thought.
Here's this
This is a good read as well. It was in 1970, under Nixon, that marijuana was classified in the same category as coke and heroin.
When Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act, it didn't have enough information about marijuana to decide exactly how illegal to make it. So marijuana was temporarily made super illegal (Schedule I) while a presidential commission was created to evaluate a long-term strategy for it.
Nixon loaded the commission with fervent drug warriors, people who favored very harsh penalties for marijuana. They spent some time studying the relevant scientific evidence, after which ... they were leaning toward recommending legalization.
Nixon got very mad. He ordered the head of the commission to get the rest of its members in line with the policy favored by the White House -- keeping marijuana
extremely legal. Nixon talked about maybe a federal judgeship for the head of the commission if it came through with such a recommendation.
The head of the commission assured the president that they wouldn't recommend legalization. He went back to the committee, twisted some arms, and ... they ended up recommending decriminalization. LOL.
Nixon blasted the commission. He went on a PR rampage against marijuana and Congress never removed it from Schedule I.
Why was Nixon so hostile toward marijuana? Because
Jews!
(This is all on the Nixon tapes, apparently.)
