Pot Pedagogy

In debates over drug legalization, concerns about minimizing black markets have taken center stage. Cannabis should be legalized, proponents argue, because if it isn’t, users will turn to unregulated, untaxed, and dangerous black markets for illicit substances.

Many conservatives and Christians have accepted this argument. According to a 2021 Gallup poll, 52% of weekly religious service attendees support legalizing recreational marijuana. Republican support has declined somewhat in recent years, but a 2025 Gallup poll still found 40% of GOP voters in favor of legalization.

The political tide appears to be moving toward full legalization. Twenty-four states have legalized small amounts of marijuana for both recreational and medical use; sixteen more permit it for medical use only. North Carolina hasn’t legalized marijuana for either purpose but has decriminalized it, so first-time possession no longer carries jail time. Of the sixteen medical-only states, seven have also decriminalized recreational possession. Only nine states still prohibit cannabis use outright.