In this episode we cover the importance of doing science that supports marginalized peoples. We also speculate the impact of upcoming cannabis policy in this episode, which was originally a media watch presentation on marijuana policy in a course titled “The AIDS Epidemic: Inequalities, Ethnography, and Ethics.”

Jorge has a PhD in Bioengineering and worked for years on optimizing a drug delivery method for a corneal disease. Jorge is a community-focused scholar and spends ample time educating LatinX youth about drug delivery. This episode is extra special because our guest is a dear friend, mentor, and a collaborator of Rene’s. Jorge can be reached at www.mayanbioengineer.com and @MayanBioengineer on Twitter and Instagram.

Original presentation date: December 7th, 2022

Original assignment abstract: Considering the social context in which people get AIDS, it is unsurprising that there is such a high interest in experimenting with marijuana as a therapy (Mack and Joy 2000). Studies have shown that patients report that marijuana has soothed vomiting, anxiety, depression, wasting, pain, and dementia associated with either HIV/AIDS or its medications, yet marijuana is criminalized aggressively and disproportionately impacts the same groups disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS (Furler et al. 2004; Hoston 2016). Given the recent talk from President Biden and lawmakers around marijuana legalization, we face an intense culture change in the United States. As a bioethics researcher, I must ask what does this transition mean for HIV/AIDS patients? What specific harms and benefits could come out of legalization of the drugs that HIV/AIDS patients might be affected?

Conclusion: The community knows best how to heal itself and it is up to us as biomedical professionals to know that. By letting those most marginalized dictate and benefit from marijuana research and product development, both biomedical research and industry can facilitate health justice.

Sources:
Source about persistence of racial disparities in MJ in Colorado: https://www.npr.org/2016/06/29/483954157/as-adults-legally-smoke-pot-in-colorado-more-minority-kids-arrested-for-it
Original Report: https://cdpsdocs.state.co.us/ors/docs/reports/2021-SB13-283_Rpt.pdf 
Buffong, Nicole, and Ibu-Nina Tabor. 2022. “Holistic Living for HIV.” Video broadcast recording. https://www.facebook.com/m4mmunited/videos/320286603469265.  
Furler, Michelle D., Thomas R. Einarson, Margaret Millson, Sharon Walmsley, and Reina Bendayan. 2004. “Medicinal and Recreational Marijuana Use by Patients Infected with HIV.” AIDS Patient Care and STDs 18 (4): 215–28. https://doi.org/10.1089/108729104323038892.  
Lajka, Arijeta. “Cops Are Still Disproportionately Arresting People of Color for Pot Crimes in Colorado.” Vice (blog), March 26, 2015. https://www.vice.com/en/article/qva77q/cops-are-still-disproportionately-arresting-people-of-color-for-pot-crimes-in-colorado.
Mack, Alison, and Janet Joy. 2000. MARIJUANA AND AIDS. “Marijuana as Medicine? The Science Beyond the Controversy.” National Academies Press (US). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK224400/.
Roser, Max, and Hannah Ritchie. “HIV / AIDS.” Our World in Data, April 3, 2018. https://ourworldindata.org/hiv-aids.
Ruiz-Sánchez, Héctor-Camilo. “Facing the Plagues Alone. Men Reshaping the HIV and Heroin Epidemics in Colombia.” University of Pittsburgh ETD. University of Pittsburgh, May 3, 2021. http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/40829/.

Season 2: Episode 1 - Our Communities Will Heal Themselves with Jorge Jimenez, PhD

Exploring the political, spiritual, medical, and racial world of our ancestors favorite plant through the lens of two Black stoner scientists.🌳

Season 2: Episode 1 - Our Communities Will Heal Themselves with Jorge Jimenez, PhD

Joint Highpothesis