Pubdate: Tue, 20 Nov 2012 Source: Redwood Times (Garberville, CA) Copyright: 2012 MediaNews Group Contact: http://www.redwoodtimes.com/Writeus Website: http://www.redwoodtimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5147 NORTHTOWN BOOKS WELCOMES AUTHOR OF SOCIAL HISTORY OF CANNABIS Northtown Books welcomes Martin A. Lee to talk about his new book Smoke Signals, a groundbreaking social history of cannabis on Friday, Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. A panoramic, character-driven narrative that explains why marijuana affects so many aspects of American life, Smoke Signals chronicles the development of a grassroots movement that began in the 1960s and grew into a widespread populist revolt against prohibition. The great leap forward came in 1996, when California voters shocked the political and medical establishments by passing Proposition 215, which authorized doctors to approve marijuana use by patients. Similar laws have since been enacted in 16 other states and the District of Columbia. Smoke Signals describes the burgeoning of a multi-billion-dollar industry and exposes collusion by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to undermine the will of the electorate. "This is an important, serious-minded look at the role cannabis has played in American history. It tackles the hard issues of marijuana prohibition with keen insight and righteous indignation. I agree with Lee's central premise that our marijuana laws are draconian. Every American should read this landmark book!" - Douglas Brinkley Martin A. Lee is the author of several books, including Acid Dreams, his acclaimed social history of LSD. He is the co-founder of FAIR, the national media watch group, and director of Project CBD, an information service that reports on cannabis science and therapeutics. Lee is also a contributing editor of O'Shaughnessy's, the journal of cannabis in clinical practice, and a writer for BeyondTHC.com. Northtown Books is located at 957 H St., in Arcata. For more information, call 822-2834. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom