Marijuana, long restricted as one of the most dangerous drugs in America, is up for reclassification by federal regulators as a medically useful narcotic.
What does that mean in Tennessee — one of the last U.S. states likely to approve a path to legalization?
That depends on what happens at the federal level and how local legislators respond. Nationwide, there is growing bipartisan consensus in favor of more lenient marijuana laws.
Cannabis advocates in Tennessee think the move by the federal government will make marijuana more mainstream.
“It goes to further reduce the stigma related to the plant,” said Frederick Cawthon, president of the Hemp Alliance of Tennessee which promotes cannabis both for its fiber and its potential medical uses.
Cawthon believes the federal reclassification will spur more research into the pharmaceutical uses of the plant.
On Tuesday, Attorney General Merrick Garland reportedly submitted a proposal to remove pot from the list of “Schedule I” drugs along with heroin and LSD. These drugs are considered unsafe, highly addictive and of no medical value.
Cannabis was outlawed in the 1970 Controlled Substances Act for being dangerously addictive and having no medical value. A half century later, most Americans have a different view of marijuana, now a multi-billion dollar industry. According to the latest Gallup poll, 70% of Americans support legalizing marijuana.
[Read more at The Tennessean]Copyright
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