Many Americans have been pleading for years to legalize #marijuana for recreational purposes. 15 states have legalized it, however the federal government has yet to legalize it for all of America. Will federal legalization be a good move? Sure it will be!

The National Institutes of Health states that “people have used marijuana, or cannabis, to treat their ailments for at least 3,000 years.” Marijuana is still considered taboo by many, and those who are not aware of its benefits, fear that it might have none. The fact is if it is legalized it would bring along a lot of benefits that help its users and the country as a whole.

As of now, marijuana has two synthetic versions that medical practitioners suggest as a treatment for “severe epilepsy and chemotherapy side effects.” Besides that, marijuana has cannabinoids in it that help in treating pain such as arthritis, migraine, fibromyalgia, etc. Marijuana has been found effective to fight depression, social anxiety, and post-traumatic stress.  It may even “slow down the growth or kill some types of cancer”...isn’t that incredible?

Federal marijuana legalization can also help local governments raise tax money for local needs, say, building public infrastructure or investing in health care. If marijuana were to be legalized and regulated, the industry could generate up to $106.7 billion annually for local, state, and federal governments. The government spends $29 billion annually on drug prohibition alone, and legalizing marijuana can save this as well. 

Legalizing marijuana will help omit crimes at large. Crime and violence, both within the U.S. and at the U.S.-Mexico border, are greatly rising due to illegal selling and buying of marijuana. Legalization would logically end the need for such criminal behavior. The drug peddlers would lose part of their illegal money source, and wouldn’t be able to amass funds from marijuana. Additionally, users would also be saved from smoking weed that illegal drug makers mixed with toxic ingredients.

According to a poll in 2017, around 52% of Americans have used marijuana at some point in life. So, when legalizing the herb has so many benefits, there's no reason why the federal government shouldn't legalize it.