Overview

Visions of Cannabis Control argues that cannabis prohibition is the result of moral panic that has been instigated, perpetuated, and sustained in ways that are difficult to dislodge. The book documents the history of these cannabis policies and explores the impact of issues such as racism, labelling, and stigmatization. Stan Cohen argued that reforms designed to replace carceral tendencies within correctional institutions can instead extend such approaches into our communities. The idea that criminal justice reforms often reproduce what they were intended to disrupt can be applied to the cannabis revolution currently underway around the world. Racial disparities in arrests persist, exacerbated by laws that make it legal to possess cannabis but illegal to consume it anywhere but in your home. In this book, the authors argue that too often, cannabis liberalization comes at the cost of expanding paternalistic public health models and abstention-based diversion programs. The goal of dismantling and disrupting illicit markets has undermined onerous regulations, anaemic marketing efforts, and failure to promote consumer-centred approaches. Emphasizing public health goals ahead of market conditions complicates legal cannabis as an industry. To understand the future of cannabis policy, Visions of Cannabis Control examines the experience of six countries and several US states through the lens of criminological theory, recent research, and practice. The book presents several solutions for responsible regulation concluding that sustaining reform will require a more inclusive approach ensuring those affected by cannabis policies are consulted, respected, and involved.

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9780198875215

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Reviews

Visions of Cannabis Control is a compelling book. The authors focus on the theoretical underpinnings of cannabis criminalization, sketching a nuanced understanding of the ways in which cannabis control has changed over time, and outlining the continuing controversies surrounding regulation of the drug in post legalization environments. Most important, Heidt and Wheeldon make a significant contribution to our understanding of the present, covering the continuing impacts of stigma, the racially driven nature of prohibition, and the issue of what is driving the ongoing opposition to both legalization and decriminalization. * Neil Boyd, Simon Fraser University * Visions of Cannabis Control makes the compelling point that legal cannabis isn't going anywhere anytime soon…if criminologists have so far failed to challenge the harmful policies that have lurked in the field's shadows, now is the time to encourage positive, and historically informed, change. Heidt and Wheeldon offer a thoughtful, informed, and enlightening contribution toward that goal. * Emily Dufton, author of Grass Roots: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Marijuana in America * Visions of Cannabis Control tells the history of cannabis with a more global approach than most work within this field. Building on their work on cannabis criminology, Heidt and Wheeldon are in continuous dialogue with criminological classics, especially Stan Cohen. The authors consider the political, sociological, and criminological dimensions of the most common illegal drug (still). Well-written and thoroughly researched it is an important and thought-provoking contribution. It is highly recommended for students and scholars alike working within criminology and criminal justice interested in the future of cannabis regulation. * Sveinung Sandberg, University of Oslo * The budding normalization of cannabis in the United States and abroad betrays the social and economic harm caused by decades of control. Indeed, previous moral panics surrounding cannabis have not been kind to those who consume it. In Visions of Cannabis Control, Heidt and Wheeldon examine the moral panics, changing regulations, and academic research that shaped our current policy. They situate current thought on cannabis by cultivating a historically and theoretically rich perspective that explains and informs policy. This book is a must have for those who want a sophisticated, detailed understanding of how cannabis has been legally, morally, and culturally renegotiated. * Heith Copes, University of Alabama at Birmingham * A masterful disciplinary intervention for criminology and a foundational interdisciplinary introduction to post-prohibition policy studies. Each chapter's theme is grounded by a much needed re-engagement with key concepts Stan Cohen worked with, fortified by other critical law and society thinkers relevant to the subjects at hand. At the same time, the authors synthesize a broad array of researchers across disciplinary spectrums to form coherent stories about contemporary landscapes of cannabis liberalization and their discontents. It is so difficult to make critical sense of an emergent reform landscape without coming off as reformist. Wheeldon and Heidt manage to keep their eyes on what's possible while clarifying and categorizing the messy dispersion of power in and through policies that often miss what should be the basic point of legalization: to end prohibition as a mode of social control. * Dominic Corva, Sociology and Cannabis Studies, Cal Poly Humboldt * Reforming the regulation of cannabis lies at the leading edge of broader efforts to correct failed drug policies, and the world is watching as the United States makes critical decisions at the levels of law and policy. Visions of Cannabis Control [This book] offers a unique, probing guide to the history and the future of cannabis control, doing so accessibly, but with remarkable sophistication. It is deeply thoughtful and quite practical at the same time. * Brandon del Pozo, Brown University *

Author Information

Jon Heidt is an Associate Professor of Criminology at the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford, British Columbia. He is also an associate of the International Centre for Criminal Law Reform and Criminal Justice Policy and has served as a program evaluator and principal investigator on research projects with Public Safety Canada. He has co-authored several books including Understanding and Youth Crime Prevention and Sports (with Yvon Dandurand), and Cannabis Criminology (with Johannes Wheeldon). His work has also appeared in a variety of academic journals including Deviant Behavior and the Journal of Criminal Justice. Johannes Wheeldon has more than 20 years of experience working in criminal justice, including teaching in prisons, working with those deemed at high risk to re-offend, and designing, conducting, and managing justice reform projects worldwide. He has worked with the American Bar Association, the Canadian International Development Agency, the Open Society Foundations, and the World Bank. Wheeldon has published six books and more than 30 peer-reviewed papers. In 2022, he edited: Visual Criminology: From History and Methods to Critique and Policy, published by Routledge. He has also co-authored Cannabis Criminology with Jon Heidt.

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