From the first recorded hemp seed planted to the second wave of cannabis legalization

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The history of cannabis in Canada can be compared to a turbulent flight—one characterized by stops and starts, detours and deviations, errors and messy modifications. But now that cannabis is legal, let’s reflect on the good, the bad and the ugly that make up the journey of getting to here and now.

1606: Louis Hebert, a French Botanist and apothecary accompanying Samuel de Champlain, plants the first North American hemp crop in Port Royal, Acadia, better known as present-day Nova Scotia.

1801: Peter Hunter, the Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, on behalf of the King of England, distributes free hemp seeds to farmers in an effort to stimulate industry.

1822: The provincial parliament of Upper Canada allocates £300 (the Canadian dollar was not established until 1867, but that amount would equal £37,800 today) for machinery to process hemp and incentivize domestic hemp producers. An additional £50 (or £6,300 today) annually over three years is further allocated for repairs.

1919: George W. Schlichten patents a new machine for separating hemp fibre from its internal core. Unfortunately, hemp production slowed in favour of cotton production.

1923: Cannabis becomes illegal in Canada after the government introduced the Act to Prohibit the Improper Use of Opium and Other Drugs and adds cannabis to opium, cocaine and morphine on the banned list.

1932:The first cannabis seizure occurs, nine years after cannabis is deemed illegal.

1962: The Royal Canadian Mounted Police report only 20 cases connected with cannabis (compared to 55,000 police-reported, cannabis-related offences in 2016 alone).

1968: The number of cannabis convictions rises to over 2,300, attributable to an adoption of the U.S. social forces of the psychedelic hippie counter-culture movement.

1969: The Canadian government forms the Commission of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of Drugs, known as the Le Dain Commission, to undertake a complete and factual study of marijuana use and its effects.

1971: The first “smoke-in” is held in Vancouver’s Gastown district. The Gastown Riot saw hundreds of protesters, many of whom were smoking pot, gathered on Maple Tree Square before being forcefully dispersed by police officers.

1973:The Le Dain Commission concludes, “Canada’s prohibition laws had only served to create a subculture with little respect for the law and law enforcement,” and recommends that the federal government remove criminal penalties for the use and possession of cannabis. No steps were taken towards decriminalization.

1978: The Canadian Bar Association urges the government to stop criminalizing the simple possession and cultivation of cannabis for an adult’s own use.

1979: The Liberal government signs the UN’s Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971, effectively halting any plans to legalize marijuana.

1987:Canada’s drug strategy is implemented to ensure “the supply and demand reduction strategies and programs in enforcement, treatment and prevention programming were funded.”

2000:R. v. Parker revolves around the case of an epileptic man who could only alleviate his suffering by recourse to cannabis. The Ontario Court of Appeal for Ontario found the prohibition on cannabis unconstitutional and cautioned the federal government to change its cannabis laws within a year or risk losing them altogether.

2001: Canada adopts a federal system regulating the medical use of cannabis with the introduction of the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR), allowing licensed patients to grow their own cannabis or access it from licensed producers.

2003:R. v. J.P. involves a man charged with possession of under 30 g of cannabis and failing to comply with a term in his probation order that he abstain from consuming illegal substances. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice found the accused not guilty, ruling that the MMAR’s rules do not form a basis for the prosecution of J.P., as they do not themselves contain any effective prohibitions.

2007: Prime Minister Stephen Harper announces a new national anti-drug strategy, imposing mandatory prison sentences on cannabis dealers. Arrests for simple possession of marijuana is reported to have also increased around this time.

2013: The federal government implements the Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (MMPR), which replaces the MMAR, to clearly define the circumstances and the manner in which access to cannabis for medical purposes is permitted.

2016:The Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR) replaces the MMPR due to the changing nature of how individuals access cannabis for medical purposes.

2016: The federal government releases A Framework for the Legalization and Regulation of Cannabis in Canada, which proposes laws and guidelines for cannabis legalization.

2017: Ottawa undertakes consultations on its proposed approach to regulating cannabis, including licensing, products, packaging and labelling.

2018:The Cannabis Act takes effect, legalizing cannabis for adult use nationwide.

2019: The federal government announces new regulations for cannabis edibles, extracts and topicals in what many call the second wave of legalization.

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