Day 55: Superfood: Hemp
Historical Superfood, Hemp for Victory, A History of Hemp
“Why use up the forests which were centuries in the making and mines which required ages to lay down, if we can get the equivalent of the forest and mineral products in the annual growth of the hemp fields?” - Henry Ford
”Make the most you can of the Hemp Seed and sow it everywhere.” - U.S. President George Washington (1794)
Welcome to Day 55!
Hemp is American as Apple Pie.
Of all the nuts and seeds we eat, hemp seeds are at the top of my list in taste and nutrition. Hemp seed mylk is delicious, and blending hemp seeds into blended soups or using the seeds in salads is a delectable treat! While growing hemp is unfortunately illegal in the U.S., Canadians and many European countries are allowed to grow it, and the seed is delivered all over the world.
Hemp seeds are one of the most nutritionally complete foods on the planet earth. They contain all nine essential amino acids in a favorable ratio. They also contain the essential fatty acids omega 3 and omega 6, and they are heavily mineralized.
In addition, the nut contains vitamins, particularly the tocopherols and tocotrienols of the Vitamin E complex, phytosterols and trace minerals. Overall, hemp main nutritional advantage over other seeds lies in the composition of its oil, i.e. its fatty acid profile, and in its protein that contains all of the essential amino acids in nutritionally significant amounts and in a desirable ratio.
Most oil seeds contain plenty of linoleic acid (LA), an essential fatty acid (EFA) from the omega-6 family, yet they offer little alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), the other EFA from the omega-3 family. Health agencies around the world agree that humans should ingest these EFAs in an omega-6/3 ratio of about 4. Since seed oil and fats in meat, both low in omega-3, account for most of our fat intake, Western diets typically have omega-6/3 ratios of 10 and more, which is far too rich in omega-6. Recent clinical research continues to identify this imbalance as a cofactor in a wide range of common illnesses: cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, diabetes, skin and mood disorders. A 1999 workshop by the U.S. National Institutes of Health demonstrated the impressive benefits of a balanced omega-6/3 ratio in our diet: reduced risk of atherosclerosis, sudden cardiac death and certain types of cancers, decrease in the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, mood improvement in bipolar disorders, and optimized development in infants.
In clinical studies, these benefits are often achieved using omega-3 rich fish and flaxseed oil supplements. A more holistic approach is to shift our general dietary fat intake towards nuts and oil with a better omega-6/3 ratio. Hemp nut and oil offer, varying somewhat with plant variety, omega-6/3 ratios of 3 and less. This exceeds the target ratio of 4 and compensates in part for omega-3 deficiencies in the rest of our diet.
Hemp Protein (Edestin)
Shelled hemp seeds consist of 36.6% protein, making them, by weight, the highest protein food on Earth, with the exception of algaes. 65+% of hemp-seed protein is in the form of globular edestin. The globular fonn of this protein gives hemp seeds a high protein content without the abrasiveness found in most high-protein foods. This makes hemp seeds uniquely beautifying, in that they are softly, yet quickly, nourishing and strength-building.
Hemp seeds contain an amazing quantity of raw protein, that include the sulfur-bearing amino acids: methionine, cysteine, and cystine. These can be immediately utilized to build strong hair, nails, skin, muscle, and connective tissue.
Many people are allergic to abrasive protein foods such as dairy, soy, whey, or peanuts. No allergies to hemp protein have yet been reported to me. Hemp seeds are free from trypsin inhibitors found in certain seeds, such as soybeans that interfere with protein digestion.
Hemp for Other Purposes
Hemp is also a valuable crop for uses other than food. Even the US Government knows (or knew) that. Hemp for Victory is a black-and-white film produced in 1942 by the USDA outlining a plan to distribute 400,000 lbs. of cannabis seeds to American farmers with the goal of producing 350,000 acres of cannabis by 1943 — all for the war effort. The USDA even went as far as to urge 4-H clubs to grow at least half an acre, but preferably 2 acres of cannabis. All American farmers were required to see the film, sign a paper saying that they had viewed the film, and read a booklet on the matter. Farmers who agreed were waived from serving in the military, and all their family members were also exempt. They received farm equipment at a discounted price, and sometimes for free.
However, before and after the war — the same plant was considered “demon weed” and the killer of the same kids that were pressed into service to grow it during the war. Furthermore, the USDA and Library of Congress denied the creation or existence of such a film until 2 copies were found and sent in to the Library of Congress.
What about smoking cannabis?
We don’t suggest it, except in the case of truly medicinal use. Here are some resources on this, and then our commentary on recreational use.
https://www.marijuanadoctors.com/blog/medical-marijuana/Juicing-Raw-Cannabis-Part-I
http://berkeleypatientscare.com/2010/09/18/juicing-raw-cannabis-for-greater-health/
http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.answers.php?questionID=001656
http://medicalmarijuana.com/experts/expert/title.cfm?artID=27
PBS Documentary:
Clearing the Smoke: The Benefits, Limits of Medical Marijuana visit: http://video.pbs.org/video/2103797319
Rainoshek Commentary:
One of the reasons that people smoke marjuana is because it gives you a feeling of alkalinity, and an alkaline feeling is a “high” feeling. Let’s look at nutrition. An over-acid person, like many people in the westernized world, is more easily given to agitation and anger. This is the reason we see so much road rage in the U.S. Someone who is over-alkaline would be the opposite: their head is in the clouds. “Whatever, dude,” is more the feeling of being too alkaline. We find this somewhat from persons who do health retreats or programs where there is a lot of wheatgrass drinking. This is not to say there is something wrong with drinking wheatgrass – it is great, but it is very alkalinizing to the system. So, smoking pot makes a person feel alkaline, therefore, most people who are smoking it have an acidity problem in their system, and that is why smoking pot feels good to them. Lastly, neither Katrina nor myself have known anyone who smoked pot regularly/consistently for recreation (several times a week) who did not begin to lose touch with reality, begin to feel a sense of overwhelm, and lose their intellectual edge that they had before.
Eat hemp seeds, make hemp mylk when you are not Juice Feasting, and encourage hemp for clothing, paper, and other industrial uses!
See you in The Green Room!
CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains how he changed his mind about using marijuana for medicinal purposes and why he wrote Attorney General Jeff Sessions asking him to reconsider US marijuana laws. Quote from Dr. Gupta: "We have been terribly and systematically misled in this country for some time, and I did some of that misleading."
LEAF | The Health Benefits of Juicing Raw Cannabis. A Must-See Video on the science of Juicing Cannabis for healing inflammatory and autoimmune disease. There is even a converted Police Officer in the video... One of the best videos - scientifically substantiated - for the use of this miracle plant in medical, non-psychoactive, applications.
Theme Music: “Jessica” · The Allman Brothers Band A Decade Of Hits 1969-1979.
Hemp for Victory. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, supplies of abaca fiber from the Philippines were cutoff. The USDA produced this video to encourage American farmers to grow hemp as part of their patriotic duty during the war.
Roseanne on Hemp
See the effects of cannabis first hand, unedited, on Parkinson's tremor dyskinesia, and voice. This clip is from the feature documentary "Ride with Larry" and shows retired police captain Larry trying medical marijuana for the first time.
Bill Maher on Drugs and Eating in the U.S.
Today’s Downloads
hemp - seeds, oil, and protein
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
This file will get your wheels spinning even more positively in the understanding of what a miracle hemp is – for industry and health.
The Emperor wears no clothes
by Jack Herer
Herer has updated his authoritative history of hemp’s myriad uses and of the war on this plant, just as it has become high-profile news, with supporters such as Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson. Herer thoroughly documents the petrochemical industry’s plot to outlaw this renewable source of paper, energy, food, textiles, and medicine.
Online Articles
Hemp Seed Oil: The New Healthy Oil by John McKlernan
Hemp seed oil, pressed from the seeds of the Cannabis sativa plant, has been named nature’s perfect food due to its balanced concentrations of omega fatty acids. Hemp used to be consumed worldwide, as it was one of the first cultivated and consumed crops. There is a misconception that hemp contains THC, the principal psychoactive constituent of the cannabis plant. Needless to say, this is false. Although relativity new to the Western Hemisphere, hemp seed oil is now widely available in health-food stores.
The seed of the hemp plant contains some of the most balanced and richest sources of oils on the planet. The ideal 3:1 ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 is recommended by the World Health Organization for optimal utilization.
(National Geographic) Clinical Study: THC Gives Cancer Cells the Munchies, Too by Nick Anthis
A new study by Salazar et al. in The Journal of Clinical Investigation demonstrates that THC causes tumor cells to begin to degrade themselves from the inside (a process called autophagy, i.e. “self-eating”). Although autophagy has been shown to promote cell survival in some cases and cell death in others, the authors show that in this case it causes cancer cells to undergo programmed cell death (apoptosis). Thus, THC activates a series of events within cancer cells, inhibiting tumor growth.
Marijuana and Radiation Protection by Dr. Mark Sircus, AC, OMD
Marijuana offers strong protective qualities against radiation exposure. Since fewer and fewer people have the financial resources to continually purchase all the helpful things they will need perhaps growing weed in our backyard will offer the public one of the best anti-radiation solutions in the long run. Instead of it being just relaxing it might become very necessary to intake marijuana to increase ones defenses against radiation exposure. Might as well get your brownies ready but one has to be careful about radiation getting into everything, even your marijuana plants, which will actually thrive nicely in radioactive environments.
Cannabinoids, the active components of marijuana, inhibit tumor growth in laboratory animals and also kill cancer cells. Marijuana cuts lung cancer tumor growth in half, a 2007 Harvard Medical School study shows.The active ingredient in marijuana cuts tumor growth in common lung cancer in half and significantly reduces the ability of the cancer to spread.
Pew Research Center: Public Support For Legalizing Medical Marijuana: Modest Rise in Percentage Favoring General Legalization
With a growing number of states moving to legalize medical marijuana, nearly three-quarters of Americans (73%) say they favor their state allowing the sale and use of marijuana for medical purposes if it is prescribed by a doctor, while 23% are opposed. Support for legalizing medical marijuana spans all major political and demographic groups, and is equally high in states that have and have not already passed laws on this issue. You can download the report by clicking here.
Great Books
By Rowan Robinson
Hemp, Cannabis sativa, has been called the world’s most versatile plant. Materials made from hemp fiber have been discovered in tombs dating back to 7000 B.C. During the Middle Ages hemp was used to treat fevers, insomnia, and malaria. Columbus’s ships had sails of hemp, and during colonial times it was universally grown because its strong fibers made superior ropes, sails, cloth, and paper. In fact, hemp was used for money in most of the Americas from 1631 until the early 1800s, and the original drafts of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were written on hemp paper.
As a food, the oil from hemp seeds has the highest percentage of essential fatty acids and the lowest percentage of saturated fats. Britain and Canada have recently lifted bans on growing industrial hemp and today it is reappearing in the marketplace in an amazing array of products: from lip-salve, jeans, salad oil, and cheese to paper products, composite fiberboard, and biomass fuel.
This illustrated, easy-to-read guide covers all aspects of hemp:
• The history of its cultivation worldwide
• Its role as a source of renewable energy and as an alternative for paper manufacturing and fossil fuels
• Its versatility as a fiber
• Its many nutritional and medicinal uses
• Examines the physiological and psychological effects of marijuana use in recreation and therapy
• A comprehensive resource section includes information on organizations involved in legalizing hemp, product suppliers, and an annotated bibliography.
By Rowan Robinson
A pocket-sized book that serves as a reminder of the many surprising facts about the medicinal and environmental value of cannabis sativa. The hemp revolution is happening, despite the efforts of politicians and law-enforcement agencies to stop it. Medical marijuana initiatives on the ballots in California and Arizona passed with overwhelming support. All around the globe this miracle plant is creating industries for food, fuel, clothing, housing, and paper that are beneficial to both humanity and the environment.
Designed to fit into the back pocket of your hemp jeans, The Hemp Manifesto offers 101 ways that hemp is making a positive impact on society, and explains why in brief summaries simple enough for even congressional representatives to understand. Included are all the most surprising facts about the plant–how the Declaration of Independence was written on hemp paper; how the U.S. government grows marijuana and supplies it to eight people free of charge; how hemp seeds are the most complete source of protein and essential fatty acids known in the vegetable kingdom; and many more. The Hemp Manifesto gives the people their most important weapon in the fight for a healthy future: the truth.
By Doug Fine
The stat sheet on hemp sounds almost too good to be true: its fibers are among the planet’s strongest, its seed oil the most nutritious, and its potential as an energy source vast and untapped. Its one downside? For nearly a century, it’s been illegal to grow industrial cannabis in the United States–even though Betsy Ross wove the nation’s first flag out of hemp fabric, Thomas Jefferson composed the Declaration of Independence on it, and colonists could pay their taxes with it. But as the prohibition on hemp’s psychoactive cousin winds down, one of humanity’s longest-utilized plants is about to be reincorporated into the American economy. Get ready for the newest billion-dollar industry.
In Hemp Bound: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Next Agricultural Revolution, bestselling author Doug Fine embarks on a humorous yet rigorous journey to meet the men and women who are testing, researching, and pioneering hemp’s applications for the twenty-first century. From Denver, where Fine hitches a ride in a hemp-powered limo; to Asheville, North Carolina, where carbon-negative hempcrete-insulated houses are sparking a mini housing boom; to Manitoba where he raps his knuckles on the hood of a hemp tractor; and finally to the fields of east Colorado, where practical farmers are looking toward hemp to restore their agricultural economy―Fine learns how eminently possible it is for this misunderstood plant to help us end dependence on fossil fuels, heal farm soils damaged after a century of growing monocultures, and bring even more taxable revenue into the economy than its smokable relative.
Fine’s journey will not only leave you wondering why we ever stopped cultivating this miracle crop, it will fire you up to sow a field of it for yourself, for the nation’s economy, and for the planet.
By John McCabe
Hemp: What The World Needs Now details the history and uses of the world’s most versatile plant. It tells how hemp can be used to create a more sustainable economy, reduce fossil fuel use, save our forests, absorb greenhouse gasses, improve farmland, and help struggling family farmers survive. It debunks the myths, rumors, and lies surrounding the plant, and covers issues relating to poliitcal and corporate corruption keeping industial hemp farming illegal in the U.S. since the 1930s.
By Michael Pollan
Every schoolchild learns about the mutually beneficial dance of honeybees and flowers: The bee collects nectar and pollen to make honey and, in the process, spreads the flowers’ genes far and wide. In The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan ingeniously demonstrates how people and domesticated plants have formed a similarly reciprocal relationship.
He masterfully links four fundamental human desires—sweetness, beauty, intoxication, and control—with the plants that satisfy them: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. In telling the stories of four familiar species, Pollan illustrates how the plants have evolved to satisfy humankind’s most basic yearnings. And just as we’ve benefited from these plants, we have also done well by them. So who is really domesticating whom?
By Mitch Earleywine
Marijuana is the world’s most popular illicit drug, with hundreds of millions of regular users worldwide. One in three Americans has smoked pot at least once. The Drug Enforcement Agency estimates that Americans smoke five million pounds of marijuana each year. And yet marijuana remains largely misunderstood by both its advocates and its detractors.
To some, marijuana is an insidious “stepping-stone” drug, enticing the inexperienced and paving the way to the inevitable abuse of harder drugs. To others, medical marijuana is an organic means of easing the discomfort or stimulating the appetite of the gravely ill. Others still view marijuana, like alcohol, as a largely harmless indulgence, dangerous only when used immoderately. All sides of the debate have appropriated the scientific evidence on marijuana to satisfy their claims. What then are we to make of these conflicting portrayals of a drug with historical origins dating back to 8,000 B.C.?
Understanding Marijuana examines the biological, psychological, and societal impact of this controversial substance. What are the effects, for mind and body, of long-term use? Are smokers of marijuana more likely than non-users to abuse cocaine and heroine? What effect has the increasing potency of marijuana in recent years had on users and on use? Does our current legal policy toward marijuana make sense? Earleywine separates science from opinion to show how marijuana defies easy dichotomies. Tracing the medical and political debates surrounding marijuana in a balanced, objective fashion, this book will be the definitive primer on our most controversial and widely used illicit substance.
By Clint Werner
This is a rare and special book. To write a book like this, an author must be a courageous, independent, and discerning investigator with impeccable journalistic integrity. Unfortunately, these qualities are sorely lacking in today’s world of investigative reporting. And, unfortunately, the lack of such qualities leads to terrible misinformation, not only about cannabis but about many other “controversial” issues. This book is meticulously researched and intelligently organized, and its massive research content is masterfully distilled. It is also well written, and that allows the reader to easily understand the scientific foundations for the ultimate research conclusions. If everyone in the U.S. read this book, our entire medical establishment would be turned up-side-down.
By Julie Holland MD
Leading experts on the science, history, politics, medicine, and potential of America’s most popular recreational drug
+ With contributions by Andrew Weil, Michael Pollan, Lester Grinspoon, Allen St. Pierre (NORML), Tommy Chong, and others
+ Covers marijuana’s physiological and psychological effects, its medicinal uses, the complex politics of cannabis law, pot and parenting, its role in creativity, business, and spirituality, and much more
Exploring the role of cannabis in medicine, politics, history, and society, The Pot Book offers a compendium of the most up-to-date information and scientific research on marijuana from leading experts, including Lester Grinspoon, M.D., Rick Doblin, Ph.D., Allen St. Pierre (NORML), and Raphael Mechoulam. Also included are interviews with Michael Pollan, Andrew Weil, M.D., and Tommy Chong as well as a pot dealer and a farmer who grows for the U.S. Government.
By Steve Fox, Paul Armentano, and Mason Tvert
Nationally recognized marijuana-policy experts Steve Fox, Paul Armentano, and Mason Tvert compare and contrast the relative harms and legal status of the two most popular recreational substances in the world–marijuana and alcohol. Through an objective examination of the two drugs and the laws and social practices that steer people toward alcohol, the authors pose a simple yet rarely considered question: Why do we punish adults who make the rational, safer choice to use marijuana instead of alcohol?
Marijuana Is Safer reaches for a broad audience. For those unfamiliar with marijuana, it provides an introduction to the cannabis plant and its effects on the user, and debunks some of the government’s most frequently cited marijuana myths. For current and aspiring advocates of marijuana-law reform, as well as anyone else who is interested in what is becoming a major political battle, the authors spell out why the message that marijuana is safer than alcohol must be a prominent part of the public debate over legalization.
Most importantly, for the millions of Americans who want to advance the cause of marijuana-policy reform–or simply want to defend their own personal, safer choice–this book provides the talking points and detailed information needed to make persuasive arguments to friends, family, coworkers, and elected officials.
By Jack Herer
Jack Herer has updated his authoritative history of hemp’s myriad uses and of the war on this plant, just as it has become high-profile news, with supporters such as Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson. Herer thoroughly documents the petrochemical industry’s plot to outlaw this renewable source of paper, energy, food, textiles, and medicine. Photos, illustrations & charts. 10 tables.
Media, Films, & Documentaries
Weed | CNN Medical Marijuana Documentary, Parts 1-4 | Dr. Sanjay Gupta
Sanjay Gupta, M.D. : Over the last year, I have been working on a new documentary called "Weed." The title "Weed" may sound cavalier, but the content is not.
I traveled around the world to interview medical leaders, experts, growers and patients. I spoke candidly to them, asking tough questions. What I found was stunning.
Long before I began this project, I had steadily reviewed the scientific literature on medical marijuana from the United States and thought it was fairly unimpressive. Reading these papers five years ago, it was hard to make a case for medicinal marijuana. I even wrote about this in a TIME magazine article, back in 2009, titled "Why I would Vote No on Pot."
Well, I am here to apologize.
I apologize because I didn't look hard enough, until now. I didn't look far enough. I didn't review papers from smaller labs in other countries doing some remarkable research, and I was too dismissive of the loud chorus of legitimate patients whose symptoms improved on cannabis.
Instead, I lumped them with the high-visibility malingerers, just looking to get high. I mistakenly believed the Drug Enforcement Agency listed marijuana as a schedule 1 substance because of sound scientific proof. Surely, they must have quality reasoning as to why marijuana is in the category of the most dangerous drugs that have "no accepted medicinal use and a high potential for abuse."
They didn't have the science to support that claim, and I now know that when it comes to marijuana neither of those things are true. It doesn't have a high potential for abuse, and there are very legitimate medical applications. In fact, sometimes marijuana is the only thing that works. Take the case of Charlotte Figi, who I met in Colorado. She started having seizures soon after birth. By age 3, she was having 300 a week, despite being on seven different medications. Medical marijuana has calmed her brain, limiting her seizures to 2 or 3 per month.
The Botany of Desire: Cannabis | Documentary | Michael Pollan
The Botany of Desire, a free PBS documentary on the evolutionary relationship between humans and plants.
The History of Hemp | Documentary
Clearing The Smoke: The Science Of Cannabis | PBS Documentary
A video from MontanaPBS reveals how cannabis interacts with the body and brain to treat nausea, pain, and maybe even cancer. Interviews with doctors, patients and researchers go over the hope of this ancient natural medicine.
The Union: The Business Behind Getting High | Documentary | with Joe Rogan
Follow filmmaker Adam Scorgie as he demystifies the underground market and brings to light how the marijuana industry can function while remaining illegal. Through growers, police officers, criminologists, economists, doctors, politicians and pop culture icons, Scorgie examines the cause and effect nature of the business – an industry that may be profiting more by being illegal. Cannabis culture, particularly in the medium of film, tends to unintentionally parody and belittle itself by excessively glamorizing the drug and perpetuating stereotypes about its users, but this documentary provides a serious platform for intelligent, well-spoken advocates of legalization to make logical (and not easily refutable) points against the U.S. and Canada’s present drug policies.
The Lightbulb Conspiracy | Documentary
A Documentary about planned obsolescence. Industries have been designed to make things break down prematurely, and has also skillfully forced things out of the marketplace (such as hemp) for capital gain.
The Future of Food and Seed | Vandana Shiva
Scientist, feminist, ecologist and author, Vandana Shiva, presenting the keynote address at the 2009 Organicology Conference in Portland, Oregon, on February 28, 2009.
[Documentary] What If Cannabis Cured Cancer? by Len Richmond (Director)
Could the chemicals found in marijuana prevent and even heal several deadly cancers? Discover the truth about this ancient medicine as world-renowned scientists in the field of cannabinoid research illustrate their truly mind-blowing discoveries.
“What if Cannabis Cured Cancer” explains how we are all born with a form of marijuana already in our bodies, and when pot is consumed, the “endocannabinoids” inside us, along with any cannabinoids we ingest, fit together like a key in a lock. Thereby promoting the death of cancer cells without harming the body’s healthy cells. A powerful and eye-opening film about the future of cannabis, and perhaps even the future of medicine. Narrated by Emmy-winning actor Peter Coyote.
“What If Cannabis Cured Cancer summarizes the remarkable research findings of recent years about the cancer-protective effects of novel compounds in marijuana. Most medical doctors are not aware of this information and its implications for prevention and treatment. This documentary presents compelling evidence that our current policy on cannabis is counterproductive and foolish. An excellent film.” -Andrew Weil, M.D.
[Documentary] Go Further, starring Woody Harrelson and Ken Kesey
Get on the bio-fueled bus with actor and activist Woody Harrelson and his band of “Merry Hempsters” as they embark on a 1,300-mile road trip from Seattle to Santa Barbara to promote environmental awareness and “Simple Organic Living.” Pop and counter-culture documentarian Ron Mann (Grass, Comic Book Confidential, Twist) chronicles every leg of Harrelson’s journey, from college campus appearances and encounters with curious onlookers, to a visit with 1960s icon Ken Kesey. With his fellow travelers, including one confessed junk food addict, Harrelson is determined to change hearts and minds, one hemp burger and sweet avocado chocolate mousse pie at a time. Featuring the music of Natalie Merchant, Bob Weir, Anthony Kiedis and Dave Matthews. “It’s all good, dude.”
[Documentary] Hempsters Plant the Seed with Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson
More than a political study of cannibis, HEMPSTERS is a rousing portrait of our country’s most spirited and sensible free-thinkers. After witnessing Woody Harrelson’s arrest for planting four feral hemp seeds in Kentucky, his subsequent trial and acquittal, filmmaker Michale Henning travels across the country in search for the mysterious and deomnized plant’s in United States history. From the Tiospaye clan of Native American Lakota to Julia Butterfly Hill and Gatewood Galbraith, HEMPSTERS is a hyper-paced film with a sizzling soundtrack that gets to the heart of just about evey grassroots issue in America today.
Emperor of Hemp: Jack Herer Memorial Tribute Edition | Documentary
This is the first marijuana film that weaves a coherent tapestry connecting cannabis, hemp, youth culture and prohibition.
And because Producer Jeff Meyers and Director Jeff Jones have a great eye for detail, finely-honed editing and a compelling audiovisual style, the film packs an emotional and intellectual punch that will hit people on all sides of the cannabis debate. Emperor is art, a poetic plea to end the drug war, and a frightening portrayal of governmental and police abuses.
You’ll find yourself angry and heartbroken watching DEA agents bust people and street police bust the heads of unarmed protesters. You’ll be moved by the piano interludes that accompany shots of Herer passionately stating that it’s an injustice if even one person is in jail for marijuana. You’ll laugh at clever juxtapositions of quotes from political leaders and activists from different eras, showing the sinister stupidity of drug war propaganda. Emperor of Hemp is a movie that can be shown to your conservative granny, police cadets, or a group of teenagers. They’ll all get the message — delivered with subtlety, fun and classy movie tricks — that cannabis prohibition is a war crime. This compelling film is not just a tool for changing hearts and minds — it’s also an homage to Jack Herer, a mortal with severe health problems whose zeal to legalize cannabis probably endangers his life.
Jack Herer’s The Emperor Wears No Clothes | Documentary
Jack Herer’s The Emperor Wears No Clothes is a short documentary film co-directed by author, Jack Herer and filmmaker, Melissa Balin. The film features celebrities and activists reading excerpts from the eponymous best-selling Hemp book, integrating archival footage, periodicals, and the government propaganda film, Hemp For Victory, to create an educational look into the Truth about Hemp, its history, and its many uses.
The film first premiered in August 2009 at the Laemmle Theatres in Los Angeles for Academy Award consideration, and has since had special screenings and premieres at The Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam, The Cultiva Fair in Vienna, Spannabis in Barcelona, and the Hanf Museum during the 60th Berlinale in Berlin.