Audio By Carbonatix
This week’s Colorado Cannabis Time Capsule is a news brief from the Telluride Daily Journal from 1904 that’s yet another example of the papers of the era slandering not only cannabis, but Mexicans as well.
It’s actually similar to another story from 1904 we recently shared with you, about two men going crazy after smoking some herb.
This time, however, the star’s a little kid.
The brief, titled “A Bad Mexican Habit”, talks about the “evil of marihuana smoking” and the lower-class type of people who use it — namely the “alarming” trend of youth smoking the plant. To illustrate this, the unnamed writer tells the story of a boy no older than twelve who ran amok “down the center of the thoroughfare, tearing his clothes and attacking all who crossed his path.”
When news happens, Westword is there —
Your support strengthens our coverage.
We’re aiming to raise $50,000 by December 31, so we can continue covering what matters most to this community. If Westword matters to you, please take action and contribute today, so when news happens, our reporters can be there.
The item makes the boy sound like the Incredible Hulk or something, and we can just imagine the feigned outrage it must have caused among well-to-do Telluride residents the day it ran.
Don’t try this at home, kids.
More from our Colorado Cannabis Time Capsule archive: “Tripping on THC in New York City in 1893” and “Swedish medical marijuana edible from 1897.”
