Not This Time

Canadians, Public Policy, and the Marijuana Question, 1961-1975

Nonfiction, History, Americas, Canada, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Government, Social Policy
Cover of the book Not This Time by Marcel Martel, University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Marcel Martel ISBN: 9781442658851
Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division Publication: December 15, 2006
Imprint: Language: English
Author: Marcel Martel
ISBN: 9781442658851
Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division
Publication: December 15, 2006
Imprint:
Language: English

Drugs are part of every society, consumed for ritual or religious purposes, for pleasure, to enhance athletic performance, or as a means to relieve pain. Throughout the twentieth century, however, an arbitrary and shifting distinction was made between legal drugs that were prescribed and administered by the medical profession, and illegal drugs that were subject to state control and suppression.

Illegal in Canada since 1923, marijuana is the most controversial of illegal drugs. Because it lacks the same addictive and harmful qualities of other illegal substances, such as heroin and cocaine, marijuana's negative social impact is questionable. In the 1960s interest groups – including university student associations, certain physicians, and others – began demanding changes to the Narcotics Control Act, which governed the legal status of drugs, to decriminalize or legalize the possession of marijuana.

In Not This Time, Marcel Martel explores recreational use of marijuana in the 1960s and its emergence as a topic of social debate. He demonstrates how the media, interest groups, state institutions, bureaucrats and politicians influenced the development and implementation of public policy on drugs. Martel illustrates how two loose coalitions both made up of interest groups, addiction research organizations and bureaucrats – one supporting the existing drug legislation, and the other favoring liberalization of the Narcotics Control Act – dominated the debate over the legalization of marijuana, and how those favoring liberalized drug laws, while influential, had difficulty presenting a unified front and problems justifying their cause while the health benefits of marijuana use were still in question. Exploring both sides of the debate, Martel presents the invigorating history of a question that continues to reverberate in the minds of Canadians.

Electronic Format Disclaimer: Images removed at the request of the rights holder.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Drugs are part of every society, consumed for ritual or religious purposes, for pleasure, to enhance athletic performance, or as a means to relieve pain. Throughout the twentieth century, however, an arbitrary and shifting distinction was made between legal drugs that were prescribed and administered by the medical profession, and illegal drugs that were subject to state control and suppression.

Illegal in Canada since 1923, marijuana is the most controversial of illegal drugs. Because it lacks the same addictive and harmful qualities of other illegal substances, such as heroin and cocaine, marijuana's negative social impact is questionable. In the 1960s interest groups – including university student associations, certain physicians, and others – began demanding changes to the Narcotics Control Act, which governed the legal status of drugs, to decriminalize or legalize the possession of marijuana.

In Not This Time, Marcel Martel explores recreational use of marijuana in the 1960s and its emergence as a topic of social debate. He demonstrates how the media, interest groups, state institutions, bureaucrats and politicians influenced the development and implementation of public policy on drugs. Martel illustrates how two loose coalitions both made up of interest groups, addiction research organizations and bureaucrats – one supporting the existing drug legislation, and the other favoring liberalization of the Narcotics Control Act – dominated the debate over the legalization of marijuana, and how those favoring liberalized drug laws, while influential, had difficulty presenting a unified front and problems justifying their cause while the health benefits of marijuana use were still in question. Exploring both sides of the debate, Martel presents the invigorating history of a question that continues to reverberate in the minds of Canadians.

Electronic Format Disclaimer: Images removed at the request of the rights holder.

More books from University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division

Cover of the book Homelands and Empires by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book The German Novel, 1939-1944 by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Educational Contributions of Associations by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book The Proterozoic in Canada by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book 'A Justifiable Obsession' by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book The Atlantic Region to Confederation by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book The Vertical Mosaic Revisited by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Epistolary Acts by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Beastly Possessions by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Looking Into Providences by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Creeping Conformity by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Sexual Equality by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Canada and the New International Economy by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Responding to Youth Crime in Canada by Marcel Martel
Cover of the book Preserving on Paper by Marcel Martel
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy