A new campus organization called the Student Hemp and Cannabis Coalition will promote hemp as an alternative sustainable resource for both AU and the United States, despite federal laws against growing cannabis plants.
“We’re not advocating legalizing marijuana,” said club founder Sam McBee. “The underlying message of the group is that the industrial hemp industry should be a legal industry in America.”
Under current federal law, the production of hemp is illegal due to the prohibition of marijuana by the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Hemp refers to the fibers of cannabis stems which can be used for textiles and other products, while marijuana — a Schedule I controlled substance — refers the plant’s flowering buds which contain psychoactive chemicals including tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.
The plant can be bred to achieve very low concentrations of THC, lessening the possibility of recreational use. Under current laws, imported hemp is legal provided that new plants cannot be grown and no THC can be ingested, according to a fact sheet from the Department of Justice.
McBee, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs, started the club as a project for the SPA Leadership Program during the fall 2012 semester and is now planning the club’s fundraising and outreach.
The group’s activities will include tabling on campus, displaying hemp products and distributing pamphlets about hemp, according to McBee. Educating people about hemp is the best way to advocate for it, he said.
Hemp fibers can be made into paper, office supplies, biodiesel and food, according to McBee.
Seven students are interested in taking part in the group’s leadership and dozens more joined the group’s Facebook page. The club was officially recognized by AU Student Activities on Jan. 29, according to McBee.
“The fact of the matter is that [hemp is] illegal for the wrong reasons,” McBee said.
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