Regulating Cannabis

Medical cannabis regulation: an overview of models around the world with emphasis on the Brazilian scenario

“…The species Cannabis sativa L. (Cannabaceae) has been cultivated by humankind since the emergence of the first agricultural civilizations, being adapted to diverse uses, including as a source of food, oil, and fiber, as well as for medicinal, recreational, and religious purposes (Robert Clarke 2013 ; Bonini et al 2018 ; Pisanti and Bifulco 2017 ; Koltai and Namdar 2020 ; Seddon and Floodgate 2020 ). This human-driven selection process over several centuries is the origin of the phenotypic diversity of species that remains nowadays (Bonini et al 2018 ; Hillig 2004 ).…”

“…Although there are records of the medicinal use of the species in various cultures since ancient times, it was not until the nineteenth century that the interest in exploring its therapeutic potential became outstanding in the Occident (Robert Clarke 2013 ; Seddon and Floodgate 2020 ). This period was marked by the widespread use of commercial cannabis-based products, which were mainly used as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-emetic, and anti-convulsant (Bonini et al 2018 ; Pisanti and Bifulco 2017 ).…”

“…Also during that period, observation of potential risks associated with cannabis use, including the abuse and chemical dependency, has raised concerns from government authorities in several countries, leading to the formulation of restrictive laws regarding the growth, commercialization, and consumption of the species (Pisanti and Bifulco 2017 ; Seddon and Floodgate 2020 ; Madras 2015 ; European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction 2018a ). In Brazil, trade-in all substances considered to be narcotics was prohibited in 1921 and, in 1932, Decree 20.9319 turned out to criminalize the user, establishing drug addiction as a disease subject to compulsory hospitalization (Oliveira 2017 ).…”

“…Despite that, cannabis remained the most widely used illicit drug in the world (Santé Canada 2016 ; World Health Organization 2018 ). Accordingly, numerous government authorities have recognized not only the failures of the current repression policies to control the abusive use of the species but also their negative impacts, including the worsening of social injustices and ineffective spending of public resources (Seddon and Floodgate 2020 ; Santé Canada 2016 ; Mackay and Phillips 2016 ). In this context, there is a growing tendency to discuss cannabis control as a public health issue in international dialogs (Santé Canada 2016 ; World Health Organization 2018 ; Mackay and Phillips 2016 ), among which stands out the Extraordinary Session of the 2016 United Nations General Assembly on the World Drug Problem, when the possibility of reviewing the repression policies defined in the abovementioned conventions was signaled, with manifestations favorable to the expansion of the autonomy of the signatory countries (Mackay and Phillips 2016 ).…”

Kink in an English Field: The Drinking, Drug use and Sexual Practices of English Festival-Goers Who Engage in Kink

“…This contextual application is particularly sensitive to the ethnicity and social class of the primary consumers, such that illicit substances are more harshly regulated and policed when the predominant consumers are people of color rather than White people (Provine, 2007 ) or working-class people rather than middle-class people (Palamar et al, 2015 ). Even as the use of certain psychoactive drugs has become increasingly normalized (Aldridge et al, 2011 ), the regulation of drugs in the UK has been described as a ratchet where emergent psychoactive substances tend to face increasingly strict legislative controls (Stevens & Measham, 2014 ); although decriminalization is gaining pace in many countries and particularly for drugs like cannabis (Seddon & Floodgate, 2020 ).…”