Conflict Theory On Marijuana

Issue Exposé #1
It is known that cannabis is a popular drug amongst university students. My peers and close friends smoke pot for a variety of reasons – aid sleep, cope with stress, etc. Almost everyone in my group circle welcomes the legalization of marijuana. With time, the perception and attitudes marijuana has altered; in the 1900s(?) it was perceived as a drug that causes deviant behavior, and in present day, it is seen as a plant with healing properties, used medically. Marijuana is many health benefits such as helping to regulate appetite, pain sensation, mood, memory, immune activation (November 9, lecture). Marijuana has the least health risks amongst the other drugs. The legalization of recreational marijuana is celebrated amongst
certain groups of people, there is the issue of how marijuana should be enforced and regulated. The legalization of marijuana taking place next year for Canada allows for “the cultivation, production, marketing, sale and use of [the] substance” (Lecture Nov. 7). With the legalization of marijuana comes the process of enforcement, which leads to the issue the harms that can be caused the enforcement of prohibition-based laws.
With marijuana going to be legalized next year in Canada, people from different social backgrounds and hierarchies that want to see marijuana legalized for different reasons.
Class conflicts of power and status as well as economic class can be seen with the discussion of enforcement of marijuana. Conflict theory can be applied to the changes (legalizing marijuana) in the social structures as this theory argues that people “pursue their interest in conflict with others and according to their resources for social organization” (Collins 414). Pertaining to a conflict theorist perspective, the social problem of legalizing recreational cannabis, is between two groups of people - the people who has power (i.e. bourgeoisie) to influence and change laws and regulations and the people (i.e. proletariat) who has to obey those laws and regulations. The definition of deviance and the norms in society will be altered by the changing of the laws. There is a power differentiation between the rich and the poor. As the rich holds dominate power on society, they have the ability to control the status quo, such as how marijuana should be legally legislated. By passing legal legislation and enforcing the laws, the powerful people (i.e. government, the elite) are able to maintain order in society. Through legalization, economic dominance and subordination of others will be created. Through the conflict theorists’ perspective, the legalization of marijuana can create problems based on how the laws will be enforced, as there will be a creation of an elite group who maintains dominace and exploit the lower socioeconomic
groups.
From the Reefer Madness video shown in class, people's views of the drug have changed over the years. One approach to look at the growth of the cannabis culture is through the symbolic interaction perspective. Symbolic-interaction theory can be used to explain the cause for legalization of cannabis. This theory looks at the interaction between individuals. Mead, a pragmatist and anti-dualist philosopher, is said to believe that the “mind and ego are products of society" (Nilgun 903). Symbolic-interactionists feel that within a system, the changes that people make starts at the individual level and the movement of change may be snowballed, depending on whether other people share the same beliefs. In the present state, there is the common acknowledgement that marijuana is not a dangerous drug, and there is a consensus that this drug should be legalized. This movement and consensus of the larger population made its way to the federal level, in which the government, Justin Trudeau, in favor of the needs of the group as a whole. The legalization of marijuana may be viewed by Mead as a favorable choice, as the common response and attitude in society is to have it legalized. Consequently, through the interaction between individuals, the legitimization of cannabis will be normalized. Therefore, certain individuals, might be impacted by the legalized cannabis. For instance, if majority of university students in one class smokes pot, a new student introduced into that environment will be more likely to smoke pot since it is considered to be the norm; the stigma attached to cannabis is socially constructed through the interaction with society of what marijuana means to them.
In summation, the legalization of cannabis creates enforcement problems of laws and regulations. The movement of marijuana has changed throughout the years and the perception of marijuana has changed from a negative perception to a more acceptable perception. Sociological lens can be applied to the marijuana legalization. Through the many social movements from pro-marijuana supporters, laws and regulations of marijuana is now changed because of the majority consensus of societal views, as can be seen from the social-interactionist perspective. Based on conflict theory, the issue of legalizing recreational marijuana is an issue of class struggle. The laws will be changed to work in the bourgeoisies' favour, against the proletariat. Therefore, through the usage of the elite classes power by implementing different laws that tailored to their own needs, the social order will be restored.