Although marijuana is still viewed as highly stigmatized in our society, two in three Americans today are in support of legalizing marijuana. Also, 35 million people in the United States identify as regular users of marijuana, meaning that they use it at least once or twice a month. The substance that these people use, however, is mostly illegal and unregulated throughout the country. This has lead to a strain on law enforcement’s resources, mass incarceration, and the loss of billions of tax dollars. Recreational marijuana should be legalized nationwide because the change would result in much fewer people in the country’s jails and a boost to the economy.

First, the legalization of recreational marijuana would result in much fewer people being sent to jail each year. Between the years 2001 and 2010, there were 8.2 million marijuana arrests with 88% being only for the possession of the substance (“The War on Marijuana in Black and White”). This is over one half of the amount of arrests made for any drug. There is a marijuana arrest every 37 seconds, resulting in the destruction of hundreds of futures each day, whether it be the criminal, their family, or their friends. Also, this strain on the prison system has led to the exhaustion of law enforcement resources and the loss of billions of tax dollars. The enforcement of marijuana restrictions costs the country about 3.6 billion dollars every year (“The War on Marijuana in Black and White”). The criminalization of marijuana also results in the waste of law enforcement personnel’s time and resources that can be used to investigate violent crimes. One reason that recreational marijuana should be legalized is the incredible amount of people that are arrested for marijuana possession each year and the absurd amount of resources that the country must use to arrest them.

Next, recreational marijuana should be legalized across the country because of the huge economic boost that it would provide. The legalization of marijuana would provide over one million jobs nationwide by the year 2025 (Williams). If marijuana were legalized right now, 782,000 would be created immediately, and this number would gradually increase over time (Zezima). These jobs would include growing, processing, and selling the substance as well as increasing job openings at banks, consulting companies, logistics companies, marketing companies, and accounting firms. Also, if marijuana were regulated and taxed in all fifty states, it could provide over $132 billion dollars in tax revenue by the year 2025 (Zezima). This number comes from if marijuana were taxed at the regular 15% that most consumer items are currently taxed at. If marijuana were legalized, it is suspected that 25% of marijuana will still be sold on the black market, but if the tax rate stays at about the 15% mark then this percentage should decrease over time (Zezima). Recreational marijuana should be legalized because of the benefits that its legalization would provide to the economy.

However, some people believe that recreational marijuana should not be legalized. One reason that people believe that marijuana should not be decriminalized is because it is addictive. A certain study shows that people addicted to marijuana made up 4.2 million of the 7 million people addicted to illegal drugs (“Why We Should Not Legalize Marijuana”). This means that more than half of drug addictions are a result of marijuana. Marijuana is not, however, as addictive as people think. Only about 9% of people who try marijuana will become dependent on it while 32% of tobacco users and 15% of alcohol users will become addicted (Tims). Tobacco and alcohol are both legal, however, even though they are both much more addictive than marijuana. Recreational marijuana should be legalized because substances that are more addictive than it are already legal.

Recreational marijuana should be legalized in the United States because it would result in less people being imprisoned annually and provide jobs and funding to the country. The legalization of marijuana would mean that less people would go to jail and less resources would be wasted on investigating the nonviolent crime of marijuana possession. Legalizing marijuana across the country would also lead to an increase in job opportunities and would provide billions of dollars in tax money to the country. The government should not be able to outlaw recreational marijuana because it does not cause harm to anyone except for the person who decides to use it, making it a personal choice.