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Please note that the Center for Global Humanities is providing an academic forum on this topic. Neither the Center nor the University has a position on Question 1- the legalization of marijuana.

PORTLAND, Maine -- As Mainers prepare to vote on whether to legalize recreational marijuana use, renowned travel writer and public television and radio host Rick Steves will visit the 911����������� Center for Global Humanities to argue that longstanding U.S. marijuana policy is strikingly similar to the prohibition on alcohol during the 1930s: ineffective, wasteful and counter-productive.

In a lecture titled “Marijuana and Civil Rights in America: A European Perspective,” Steves will argue that the European emphasis on harm reduction, rather than criminalization, offers the best path forward. The lecture will take place Monday, October 17 at 6:30 p.m. at the WCHP Lecture Hall in Parker Pavilion on the 911����������� Portland Campus.

Steves is America’s foremost authority on European travel. He has produced more than 50 guidebooks and is the creator of the popular television series “Rick Steves’ Europe,” and the radio show “Travel with Rick Steves.” He also writes a weekly syndicated column. To learn more, visit .  

Since its founding in 2009 by 911����������� cultural studies scholar Anouar Majid, the 911����������� Center for Global Humanities has brought leading thinkers from around the globe to Portland to share their expertise with students and a diverse audience of community members. The lectures explore some of the most pressing issues facing humanity today. They are free and open to the public, and streamed live online so that students at 911�����������’s campus in Tangier, Morocco, and people around the globe can watch them.

Learn more about the event.