Issue:
97
Page: 7
ABC’s Reporting on Marijuana, Medicinal Cannabis, Compassionate Use, Legalization, etc.
by Mark Blumenthal
HerbalGram. 2013; American Botanical Council
Perhaps the most groundbreaking news
after the US elections last November was that citizens of the states of
Colorado and Washington voted to legalize the use of recreational cannabis (Cannabis spp., Cannabaceae). Both states
previously had legalized medicinal cannabis use, two of 18 total states, plus
the District of Columbia.
As many American Botanical Council
members and frequent HerbalGram
readers likely have noticed, our journal has been devoting several pages in
recent issues to the growing medicinal cannabis movement, in a new “Cannabis
Update” section, home to a series written by associate editor Lindsay Stafford
Mader. In this issue, Mader discusses the Israeli government’s largely
successful and non-controversial medicinal cannabis program, which currently
enables almost 10,000 patients to access the herb. Her previous topics include
sequencing the cannabis genome, the US government’s monopoly on cannabis grown for
scientific research, and the medicinal role of non-psychoactive cannabidiol
(CBD).
ABC has not always featured such
robust cannabis coverage. For many years, we chose not to publish articles on
medicinal cannabis, even though we believed the topic was important,
compelling, and worthwhile. During that time — in the late 1980s and early '90s
— it was our editorial opinion that if we were to have done so, many people
might have misinterpreted our mission as being “to legalize pot.” And, because
we were so passionate about ensuring coverage of many other medicinal plants — e.g., chamomile, echinacea, garlic,
ginger, ginkgo, ginseng, milk thistle, mint, turmeric, and hundreds of other
traditionally used and scientifically researched plants — we did not want to be
painted into the corner of being perceived merely as a marijuana legalization
organization, which we are not.
In November 1992, HerbalGram published its first medicinal
cannabis article (“Government Stops Legitimate Medical Use of Marijuana:
Politics Becomes More Important than Science and Humanitarian Concerns”) in
Issue 26. It dealt with the decision of the administration of President George
H.W. Bush to cease issuing new permits for the Compassionate Use program, which
had enabled a few dozen very ill patients to have federally legal medicinal
cannabis.
Since then, ABC has published
approximately 29 HerbalGram articles
and 97 HerbClips — many authored by long-time HerbClip writer Mariann
Garner-Wizard — that discuss cannabis, marijuana, and/or hemp (a
non-psychoactive variety of cannabis). The first cannabis-related HerbClip,
published in January of 1996, discussed US federal regulators’ concerns about a
new Adidas shoe made with hemp. ABC’s e-newsletter HerbalEGram also has
published dozens of cannabis-related stories, featured book excerpts, and media
news links.
The argument for legalization of
medicinal cannabis, and even decriminalization of recreational use, has
supporters in all areas of the political spectrum. This includes the late noted
conservative William F. Buckley, and, later, retired libertarian Congressman
and presidential candidate Ron Paul (a physician), among others. Retired
liberal Massachusetts congressman Barney Frank joined with Paul to introduce a
bill before Congress that sought to end federal cannabis prohibition so that
states could make their own decisions regarding cannabis legalization, and
comedian Bill Maher has been forthright about his cannabis use for years. As
stated by Lieutenant Governor of California Gavin Newsome, a probable candidate
for governor and a stated non-user who favors decriminalization, “These laws
just don’t make sense anymore. It’s time for politicians to come out of the
closet on this.”
There is obvious growing social
demand for and acceptance of medicinal cannabis, and for this, and other
reasons, ABC has increased its cannabis coverage in recent years. Now, more
than 20 years since our first cannabis story, we have decided to recognize this
important plant with the first-ever HerbalGram
cannabis cover, featuring a beautiful image by photographer Johnny Wiggs.
Other herb organizations also are
dealing with cannabis. The American Herbal Pharmacopoeia is developing a
Standards Monograph and Therapeutic Compendium — the first of its kind in North
America — and the American Herbal Products Association’s Cannabis Committee
just released draft recommendations for regulators on the legal dispensation of
medicinal cannabis.
As members of the medicinal cannabis
community continue to work on quality standards, scientific research, and legal
advocacy, ABC will maintain its medicinal cannabis coverage. From our
perspective, cannabis is just another medicinal plant — one with a compelling
history and an apparently promising future. —Mark Blumenthal
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