What do Playboy and the Legalization of Marijuana have in Common?

The Playboy Company established the Playboy Foundation in 1965. Their mission was to give grants to groups supporting first amendment rights. The main agenda was fighting censorship and exploring human sexuality.

In 1970, NORML was founded by Keith Stroup from the Playboy Foundation. NORML stands for National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. NORML became a non-profit organization that based itself in Washington D.C.

Since the 70's, NORML has been at the forefront in changing the public opinion for legalizing marijuana. Stroup stated:

“It is truly the beginning of the end, and I am thrilled to have lived long enough to experience this. We now have members of Congress who formerly would not even take our phone calls now calling our office to ask for our help drafting marijuana bills, and the positive reaction on the state level is even more pronounced. What seemed politically impossible to elected officials only a few months ago now seems quite achievable.”

The connection to Playboy continued with the establishment of High Times Magazine. In 1974, Tom Forcade thought his magazine "High Times" would be a one-time publication. His goal was to create a parody of Playboy by showing naked marijuana leaves. The first publication sold 550,000 copies becoming a hit. High Times has become one of the most popular marijuana magazines and promotes the legalization of cannabis.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Organization_for_the_Reform_of_Marijuana_Laws

http://www.alternet.org/drugs/new-norml-looking-back-40-year-crusade-end-marijuana-prohibition