I don't smoke weed.

Because of this, a misconception that others get about me is that I’m against the legalization of marijuana. That is simply not true. Just because I don’t smoke doesn’t mean I’m against pot legalization. I, along with more than half of Americans, support the legalization of marijuana.

As of April 2018, marijuana has been legalized in nine states and the District of Columbia. The rest of America has yet to follow their footsteps.

It’s no secret that cannabis is a powerful plant, but there are currently no documented reports of deaths caused by marijuana. Every year, thousands of people die from cigarette use, drug overdoses, and alcohol-related causes, yet not one single account of a marijuana overdose has been reported.

Keeping marijuana illegal isn’t stopping anyone from smoking it. It’s kind of like the prohibition of alcohol during the 1920s didn’t stop anyone from drinking alcohol. In fact, the prohibition created organized crime, overburdened police, courts, and the penal system, caused physical harm, corruption, and so many other negative effects. The same thing goes for prohibiting marijuana.

The FDA might think that keeping the herb illegal will stop folks from sparking up. But in reality, it’s not. According to a new survey, over forty percent of Americans admit to trying cannabis at least once in their lives.

Believe it or not, it is actually more expensive to keep marijuana illegal. Billions of dollars are spent each year on law enforcement in America’s war on drugs. Since marijuana is still technically illegal in the country, marijuana consumers are prosecuted day by day — and there are a lot of them.

In fact, many don’t realize it, but the crime rate will actually decrease if weed is legalized and it would end the costly enforcement of marijuana laws and free up police resources.

There are proven health benefits from marijuana like fighting cancer cells, stopping HIV from progressing into AIDS, and treating chronic pain. To be honest, using marijuana for chronic pain beats shoving dozens of prescriptions down your throat to relieve the pain.

Sure most doctors will prescribe you pills to take your pain away, but what they don’t tell you is that you’ll also need another pill to treat the symptoms of the other pill. Before you know it, you’ll be taking more medication than your body can handle, making you more prone to addiction and overdose.

I’m not a weed smoker, but I never saw the point of it being against the law. If marijuana has numerous benefits for health, the economy, and other things, why is it illegal? Keeping weed illegal is only hurting the United States.

Considering the facts, if marijuana were to be legalized, many medical issues can be solved and millions of dollars more will be available to be put towards our nation’s debt. We can help end the war on drugs and boost the economy if marijuana is legalized. Research shows that banning marijuana does more harm than good, so let’s make the right decision and repeal the prohibition of marijuana.