The debate over whether or not cocaine is addictive is ongoing and complicated. The majority of mental health professionals take the view that regular cocaine users cannot voluntarily stop taking the drug. In this sense, cocaine meets the definition of an addictive drug. Moreover, these experts believe that cocaine use leads to physical changes [...]

After more than two decades of relative obscurity, cocaine re-emerged on the American drug scene in the early 1970s. Deterred by the obvious addictiveness and social stigma of drugs like heroin and the occasional “bad trip” associated with hallucinogens such as LSD, some Americans saw cocaine as a relatively harmless “recreational” drug. Its potential for [...]

Anslinger became the first Commissioner of Narcotics in 1930, although he had had only sporadic contact with narcotic control.1 Nonetheless, his more than ten years of government experience affected his attitude toward law enforcement and [...]

In late 1929 the League of Nations called for a new conference to consider how manufactured drugs might be better controlled.7 The State Department wanted to participate but it faced Representative Porter’s objection that participation might imply that the United States had shifted its stand from demanding a limit on raw production to the secondary [...]

During its first few years, the bureau, as judged from its annual reports, minimized the marihuana problem and felt that control should be vested in the state governments.24 The report published in 1932 commented, This abuse of the drug is noted among the Latin-American or Spanish-speaking population. The sale of cannabis cigarettes occurs to a [...]

The AMA’s role in narcotic legislation reflected its stage of institutional development. By 1913 the American Medical Association, from a relatively small group centered mostly in the eastern states, was well on its way to consolidation of American medical practitioners. Like the American Pharmaceutical Association, it represented a group desire to strengthen the education and [...]

The presidency of Woodrow Wilson began in March 1913, with Democrats now in control of both Houses. Initially Wright was delighted with this change. Wilson and Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan supported strict regulation of narcotics and seemed to have nothing but admiration for America’s initiative in international control. Wright gave a glowing report [...]

The interaction among the biology of addiction, market economics, and other aspects of cultural context also has been observed repeatedly in the United States. In the years after World War II, over-the-counter drugs containing methamphetamine were widely available in the United States. Amphetamine tablets were available without prescription until 1951, and amphetamine-containing inhalers were available [...]

The December sessions heard arguments in support of strict control of habit-forming drugs, and several members of the drug trades favorably inclined toward the Foster bill appeared at the hearings. After the Christmas recess the opposition was heard. A week before hearings were resumed, Wright came to New York to conciliate doubtful medical and pharmaceutical [...]

Congress had failed Wright, and now prospects for the great international conference were filled with uncertainty. Delay after delay marked planning for its opening session. Wright and some of the State Department staff began to suspect a conspiracy against the American crusade. He was tempted to push a little harder, but from the American Embassy [...]