Professor To Host Screening of Documentary
October 7, 2009
The University of Southern Maine presents a screening of the award-winning documentary, “Waiting to Inhale” at 7 p.m., Wednesday, October 21, Talbot Lecture Hall, USM’s Luther Bonney Hall, Portland. The documentary will be followed with a discussion by USM Professor Wendy Chapkis, author of the new book “Dying to Get High: Marijuana as Medicine.” This event is free and open to the public. For more information on the event, please contact Wendy Chapkis at 780-4289.
“Waiting to Inhale” examines the use of cannabis as medicine in the United States. Thirteen states, including Maine, have passed legislation to protect patients who use medical marijuana.
The documentary takes viewers inside the lives of patients who have been forever changed by illness and parents who lost their children to drug addiction. Is marijuana really a gateway drug? What evidence is there to support the claim that marijuana can alleviate some of the devastating symptoms of AIDS, cancer and multiple sclerosis? And what would an ethical non-profit medical marijuana distribution system look like?
This film and discussion is especially relevant to Maine voters who will be deciding on November 3 whether to allow state-licensed non-profit medical marijuana distribution in the state of Maine.
The University of Southern Maine (USM) offers its 10,000 plus students more than 115 areas of undergraduate and graduate study. USM’s location in southern Maine, a region cited as one of the most liveable in the country, offers a range of educational, cultural and recreational opportunities.
