Harry Anslinger - Gone Yet Sadly Still Here
Recently I have been doing research for a couple of new projects and I have been so pleased with the resources I have stumbled upon. When Robert and I were first arrested in 1975 there wasn’t much out there in terms of books on cannabis policy or history. But my recent research efforts have unearthed some excellent studies of the American drug scene. The mainstreaming of cannabis is yielding topically relevant books and analyses that will make you a better activist or educator. If you are serious about cannabis you should be looking for these books too.
An undated photo of a young Harry J. Anslinger
One particularly good resource is the Internet Archive where I found, among many choices, The Protectors: Harry Anslinger and the Federal Bureau of Narcotics 1930-1962. Written by John C. McWilliams in 1990, this book is a well-rounded accounting of the ever fascinating Mr. Anslinger. It is considerably more academic than the currently popular Chasing the Scream by Johann Hari, but it is no less fascinating.
Another, this one from 2004, is Federal Drug Control:The Evolution of Policy and Practice edited by Jonathon Erlen and Joseph F. Spillane. This book has a couple of excellent chapters that better explain the complexity of America’s first drug czar and his effect on U.S. drug policy, which is substantial. Writing in Chapter 4, “The Narcotic Control Act Triggers the Great Nondebate”, Rebecca Carroll concludes that Anslinger had five advantages that helped him retain power for thirty years: 1) he was the first on the scene (in the 1930s the U.S. had no history of drug policy), 2) the “poverty” of his field—there were no credible critics or policy wonks in the 1930s, 3) before 1970 there was little public interest in illicit drugs, 4) his listeners were pre-disposed to listen to him and accept what he said, and 5) Anslinger’s zeal, which was impressive.
Both these books can be bought on Amazon but a far more economic site is the Internet Archive where you can read both these books for free. Or, if you are more clever than I, you’ll be able to download the books to some Adobe Digital File app that I couldn’t get to work. Sigh…
The cannabis argument will always have Harry J. Anslinger at the center and it is important to understand how his three-decade-reign corrupted America’s drug policy. As Ms. Carroll writes, “despite his foibles and idiosyncrasies, Anslinger initiated policies that remain relatively intact today.”
The only way to fix the problem with America’s drug policy is to understand from where they originated and reform them… truly reform them. As Carroll further notes: “Anslinger dramatically increased the United States’ intolerance for narcotics, narcotics sellers, and addicts. He also increased the United States’ appetite for stronger laws with heavier punishment to control illegal drugs. This appetite has not yet been satisfied.”
Since you’re here, why not stop by the Medical Marijuana Memorabilia Store? There may be something you like there.
