The State of Legalization in America

The United States is rapidly legalizing Marijuana for medical and recreational purposes. We will keep score of each state’s legalization status. As of September 2019, 33 states have legalized medical marijuana and 11 states have legalized marijuana for recreational purposes.

According to a Pew Research Center study, marijuana legalization support is on the rise among Americans. Six out of ten Americans say marijuana should be legalized.¹ 62% support legalization while 38% do not support legalization. These numbers have stayed stagnant for the past few years.

Differences in Generational Support for Cannabis Legalization

Millennials make up the majority of legalization supporters with 74% approval. Gen. Xers have a 63% approval rating. While only 54% of Baby Boomers support legalization marijuana. It’s interesting Baby Boomers, who are born between 1946 and 1964, don’t have more support for legalization. Baby Boomers shaped the sixties. They are the generation defined by Woodstock, the hippie sub-culture, free love, drug experimenting, and protesting the Vietnam War.

1https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/10/08/americans-support-marijuana-legalization/