How Myths About Marijuana Were Born

There are countless myths associated with marijuana. We’ve all heard at least a few of them—for example, “using marijuana can cause cancer” or “weed makes you stupid.” All these myths, many of which didn’t arise by accident, reinforce stereotypes and negative attitudes toward this plant among the general public.

So how did these myths come about? Today, with the internet in every home, it’s not so easy to manipulate people, since there’s so much information available that all we have to do is distinguish truth from fiction. But in the “pre-internet” era, the only sources of mass information were television and print media. Most people simply accepted any information from “official sources” as fact. It was during these times that most of the myths about marijuana appeared.

Let’s take a look at how the “facts” that were actively used in anti-marijuana propaganda around the world were born.

Official Lies

The first wave of myths about stoners was triggered by government-sponsored “studies of marijuana.” For a long time, only research that could reveal negative consequences of marijuana use received government funding. Any attempts to find medical benefits of the plant were shut down at the outset. And although most of these so-called studies led to erroneous results, anti-marijuana advocates at the government level presented them as “proven facts.” Ordinary people, of course, believed them and then told their friends, “You know, marijuana kills more brain cells than liters of alcohol ever could.” These stereotypes became so deeply rooted that even now, generations later, it’s very hard to get rid of them.

The Effect of Sensational Headlines

How many times have you read headlines like, “Marijuana killed a teenager who jumped out a window”? Most people don’t even read the full article—at best, just the first paragraph. Somewhere at the end of the text, there’s a line: “Doctors concluded that the marijuana found in the teenager’s system was not the cause of death.” But hardly anyone reads that far. The result? People start to believe that marijuana really can kill.

Propaganda

Anti-marijuana advocates have always had unlimited resources to achieve their goals. Alongside so-called “scientific research,” they launched a years-long propaganda campaign against marijuana. “Respected figures” would tell children and teenagers about the dangers of drugs, always including marijuana in the list. Countless commercials and posters were produced, showing the supposed horrific consequences of its use.

Remember: a lie repeated a thousand times becomes the truth. Most myths about marijuana are the result of this very tactic, used by those who benefit from keeping it illegal.

Persecution of Stoners

In recent years, thanks to the internet, it’s become much harder to manipulate information about marijuana. In the past, the claim that “marijuana will ruin your life” was taken literally, but now many users prove the opposite with their own experiences and share their stories. So what do opponents do? They intensify the fight, passing new laws that target growers, users, and even people who just happen to be nearby. So marijuana can still ruin your life—but now only in a figurative sense.