Hemp for Victory (1942 USDA Film)
Hemp for Victory was a 13 minute propaganda-esque film released by the United States Department of Agriculture in 1942, urging U.S. farmers to grow industrial hemp for the war effort. Of course, it was just five years earlier in 1937 when the anti-Cannabis campaign efforts of Harry Anslinger and the Bureau of Narcotics successfully culminated in the early stages of both hemp and marijuana prohibition. Because industrial hemp is immensely productive, the federal government recognized that it needed all the hemp it could get its hands on to get an upper hand in World War II.
Essentially, the message here is a product will be legal and production encouraged so long as the government can benefit from it during wartime. Otherwise, it’s the middle finger to the people and the economy.
Title screen of Hemp for Victory.
