THINK YOU KNOW THE CHRONIC?
The Real Dope on Dope
. I was under the impression that Marijuana Day, if such a thing exists, occurred around late April - the calendar manifestation of the international pot-smoking code 420.
Four-twenty, in case you were wondering, has mythical origins. Popular belief claimed it was derived from police code for dope-smoking; in fact, nowhere in the United States is 420 a code for marijuana. Other theories attributed 420 to the number of chemicals in tetrahydrocannabinol ( wrong, there are only about 315 of them ) or the date of Hitler's birthday ( right, because I always associate weed and Hitler ). In fact, it is believed the true beginnings of the three digits that took a generation by storm began with a group of California stoners in the early 1970s who called themselves The Waldos. Unbeknownst to the history they were making, they designated 4:20 as their time to gather at the foot of a statue of Louis Pasteur and toke up after school. They employed the term "420" as a secret code to discuss herb in front of their unknowing parents.
In case you were wondering. Now what was I talking about again? Oh yes. If you've read this far, you're probably interested in the history behind the counterculture's beloved pet cause/mascot. Marijuana has been around for thousands of years; used throughout history to treat ailments and alter mood, perception and consciousness. Its ability to heighten the senses and provoke mystical experiences has garnered dope a place in history, religion and medicine as far back as 4000 B.C., when the Chinese used it as an anesthetic.
It was downhill from there. For millenia marijuana has been used in religious ceremonies in South America, Africa and India, where it was once prescribed by shamans and even today is used to cure ills from muscle spasms and pain to indigestion.
Marijuana and hemp have also been used for a myriad of other functions. Assyrians used it as incense in the ninth century; hemp fibers have been found in archaeological dig sites dating as far back as 3000 B.C. Greek scholar Galen wrote about hemp being given to dinner guests to promote a good time. Thus began the tradition of party favors, perhaps?
In 1611, hemp was cultivated for fiber in Jamestown, Va.; 20 years later the Pilgrims brought the motherland marijuana over to New England. That's right. You heard me. Those Pilgrims were smokin' the cheebah too. Fast forward a few centuries to when Mexican laborers introduced recreational weed-smoking to the United States. The trend spread to - where else? - 1920s New Orleans. Since then, Mary Jane found her niche with artists and writers seeking a catalyst for creativity, which would later fuel literary and political movements that would mark American history ( the Beat generation, hippies ).
Marijuana was outlawed in 1937 when drug czar Henry Anslinger's Reefer Madness propaganda campaign claimed that weed provoked murderous rampages and adulterous behavior, pinning the blame on immigrants and minorities. It was then briefly re-legalized in 1969 in a court case championed by Timothy Leary; this achievement was short-lived when the Controlled Substance Act was passed in 1970.
Today the debate over the legality of marijuana continues.
