THE J HEALTHCARE INITIATIVE
TIMELINE
PRE PROHIBITION
1700s-1800s: Opium and other psychoactive substances were legal and used medicinally in many cultures. Indigenous peoples in the Americas revered the coca leaf. The opium poppy had a long history of traditional and ceremonial use in Asia and the Middle East [1,2]
Late 1800s: Anti-Chinese sentiment in Canada linked opium smoking to Chinese immigrants, seen as a threat to white Christian society. This xenophobia laid the groundwork for prohibition [3]
Early 1900s: The U.S. began prohibiting drugs associated with disfavored groups, like opium for Chinese immigrants, cocaine for African Americans, and cannabis for Mexicans. These laws were rooted in racism rather than science [4]
BEGINNING OF PROHIBITION
1908-1920s: Canada criminalized opium, then other drugs. Enforcement targeted Asian immigrants. The U.S. followed with federal drug laws [3] [5]
Criminalizing drugs failed to curb addiction and abuse. Heroin use rose in the later 20th century, concentrated in marginalized communities [5]
CURRENT STATE
Globally, prohibition has enabled violent criminal drug trafficking. Communities of colour disproportionately suffer arrests, prosecution and incarceration for drug offences despite similar rates of use across races [6]
Overdose (drug-poisoning) deaths have dramatically increased in recent decades despite escalating enforcement and incarceration for drug offences [7]