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Carl Packard

Hemp for Victory!

hemp for victory

In 1943 the US was embroiled in World War II.  The Japanese had been invading islands in the Pacific, going after the Philippines.  Their fleet had cut off access to Manila and many supplies that the US war effort relied upon.  One of those supplies was hemp.  Hemp was widely used by the US Navy.  But, thanks to the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, Cannabis was no longer legal to grow on domestic soil.  Once we were cut off from those precious hemp supplies, the government realized that they needed to supply their own hemp.  Afterward the Department of Agriculture put together a piece of wartime propaganda called “Hemp for Victory.”  This short film was distributed and shown to American farmers as an instructional guide for growing and preparing cannabis crops for industrial use.

“Hemp For Victory” outlines the proper way to pick seeds, and proper soil types for optimum growing conditions.  It then goes on to discuss harvesting techniques and how it gets turned from a plant into the many items the Navy uses.  In 1942 the US harvested 36,000 acres of hemp and for 1943, with the help of some patriotic farmers, they were looking to yield upwards of 50,000.  They needed it for the war effort; a battleship required 34,000 feet of hemp rope for mooring lines, tows, anchor lines, tackle and gear.  The army used hemp for parachute webbing, light duty fire hoses, threads in shoes and clothing, twine and more.  Of course to plant all these crops, American farmers needed a special permit from the Internal Revenue Service, or else they would be criminals, instead of patriotic planters.

It’s amazing how the US government is willing to turn a blind eye against their own laws, when it suits their purposes.  Marijuana the medical herb is the scion of this plant yet it was completely banned.  Suddenly America needed it again and it was legal for a special few to grow it.  However, after the war the film was mothballed and the official word from the USDA was that it did not exist.  The government denied its existence until two copies of it surfaced and were donated to the Library of Congress in May 1989, by Mia Farrow, Carl Packard and Jack Herer.  On one hand marijuana is evil, but on the other it is the most useful plants Americans needed to win the war.

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