Early on in his career, Harry J. Anslinger went on the record basically saying cannabis use was no big deal. He called the idea that it made people mad or violent an “absurd fallacy.” But this would change because his racist leanings. In 1930, Anslinger was appointed the first commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, the agency that led directly to today's DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency).
What changed Anslinger's outlook was when he discovered several Black jazz musicians were dating White women. This infuriated Anslinger and he used the fact that Jazz musicians were commonly using the same product he had previously claimed was no big deal. While it was true it was a common staple among some of the Jazz greats, some like Cab Calloway (right) called it a song writing assistant and in 1931, wrote the song, "Have You Ever Met That Funny Reefer Man" which was eventually shortened to just "The Reefer Man".
One of the first places to make possession of cannabis a crime was New York City. Anslinger had convinced authorities it was a dangerous product and basically used by Jazz Musicians. Among the first to be arrested for the new crime was Louis Armstrong in 1930. Armstrong was sentenced to five months, but the owner of the club he was booked made sure Armstrong was out the next morning with a $1000 fine. Later,
even Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, and a young B.B. King were arrested for possession.
However, once Anslinger, who wanted to stop it from the top, was able to make peddling Cannabis a Federal crime in 1937, the first two arrests were a
White man and a Mexican American. The White man, Samuel R. Caldwell, had been peddling marijuana for several months before the law took place. He didn't use it, but the sale of the product was how the 57 year old man made his living, but once the law was passed, Caldwell was arrested with four pounds of cannabis found in his Lothrop Hotel room on Denver, Colorado’s Laurence Street. The Mexican American was 23 year-old, Moses Baca, who was found in a bureau
drawer in his third-floor rooming house on California Street in Denver two days before Caldwell's arrest. Even though the law only applied to peddlers, the police saw the marijuana as an excuse to arrest Baca, a native born citizen of Colorado with a long rap sheet. Pretty ironic they were arrested in Denver, which today is a hot bed of legal cannabis.
After a few early successes, Anslinger upped the ante on his anti-Cannabis crusade. He was behind the making of the public-scare films like "Reefer Madness" and "Marijuana: Assassin of Youth". His campaign mostly worked on a public level until the advent of the 1960's counter-culture scene. Sure, there were a few who tried to ignore the laws, some like actor James Garner
and Montgomery Clift, smoked Cannabis for decades, Garner started in the '40s and was still smoking through his years on "The Rockford Files". Others, like Robert Mitchum were arrested in high profile trials. Mitchum spent two months in jail.
Back then, people liked to keep it on the down low. Today with eleven states and the District of Columbia hosting legal recreational dispensaries and twenty-two states with Medical Marijuana it shouldn't be surprising that several music and film professionals openly state they smoke the product. The
first in the early '70s were Cheech an Chong, quickly followed by luminaries like Willie Nelson, Snoop Dog, Seth Rogan, Woody Harrelson, Lady Gaga, and more. Even President Barack Obama admitted to smoking it. While Bill Clinton claimed he did not inhale, when Obama was asked if he inhaled, he answered, "I inhaled frequently, that was the point".
But all states would be legal today if not for the racism of Harry J. Anslinger. With the murders of George Floyd and many other Black men and women, we know racism is dangerous, but when you think of all the men and women of all colors who have spent time behind bars for enjoying Cannabis, we know the social tragedy of racism.
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White man and a Mexican American. The White man, Samuel R. Caldwell, had been peddling marijuana for several months before the law took place. He didn't use it, but the sale of the product was how the 57 year old man made his living, but once the law was passed, Caldwell was arrested with four pounds of cannabis found in his Lothrop Hotel room on Denver, Colorado’s Laurence Street. The Mexican American was 23 year-old, Moses Baca, who was found in a bureau 
drawer in his third-floor rooming house on California Street in Denver two days before Caldwell's arrest. Even though the law only applied to peddlers, the police saw the marijuana as an excuse to arrest Baca, a native born citizen of Colorado with a long rap sheet. Pretty ironic they were arrested in Denver, which today is a hot bed of legal cannabis.
and Montgomery Clift, smoked Cannabis for decades, Garner started in the '40s and was still smoking through his years on "The Rockford Files". Others, like Robert Mitchum were arrested in high profile trials. Mitchum spent two months in jail.
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