hown that THC is effective in reducing the nausea that cancer patients experience when they are treated with chemotherapy. Marijuana is also believed to stimulate appetite. In asthma patients, several studies have shown that THC acts as a bronchodilator and reserves bronchial constriction (Rosenthal 68). In treating epilepsy, marijuana is used to prevent both grande mal and other epileptic seizures in some patients. Marijuana also limits the muscle pain and spasticity caused by multiple sclerosis and it relieves tremor and unsteady gait. Lastly, marijuana has been clinically shown to be effective in relieving muscle spasm and spasticity (Rosenthal 69). History of Marijuana LawsThe hemp plant was once a widely cultivated plant in the New World by settlers. It has been known for centuries that the fiber from the hemp plant is very useful in making ropes. Therefore the cultivation of the hemp plant was encouraged and much needed. The first law concerning the hemp plant was passed in 1619 by the Virginia Assembly, urging farmers to grow the crop for its fiber. There was virtually no significant legislation passed concerning the hemp plant until the 1900’s. It was at this time when American attitudes towards Mexicans became hostile. Marijuana obtained a foul reputation when Mexican peasants crossed the border into Texas. It was widely used by Mexican peasants as an intoxicant. The Texas police claimed that marijuana caused these Mexican settlers to commit violent crimes. Therefore in 1914, the first ban on possession of marijuana was passed in El Paso, Texas (Potter 97). Many other states followed Texas, and in 1937, Congress passed the Marijuana Tax Act. This law made the possession of marijuana illegal anywhere in the United States. During the McCarthy era, the Boggs Acts were passed to define mandatory minimums for the possession of marijuana. Congress moved to an even stronger position in 1956 by lengthening the...
