The Juneau-Douglas City Museum has accepted a donation of one gram of marijuana purchased from Rainforest Farms, the first smoke shop to open in Juneau. The donation was made by Juneau Empire state reporter James Brooks.
Brooks purchased the sample Nov. 23, and was the second Juneau resident to legally purchase marijuana in the capital city. The first was a Rainforest Farms employee. Brooks purchased the gram with the intent to donate it to the museum.
Due to the unprecedented nature of the offer, Director Jane Lindsey and Curator of Collections and Exhibits Jodi DeBruyne needed to ensure that the cannabis met the mission of the museum, given the federal illegality of the substance.
When weighing the merits of the donation, museum staff asked: Does it meet our mission? Does it help us interpret Juneau-Douglas city history? Does it violate city and state law? Can we care for it? How important will it be to our collection 50 to a 100 years from now?
“When collecting at a history and cultural museum, we need to remember that it doesn’t always mean looking to the past. History is being made in the world every day and capturing that history, in one form or another, as it is being made can greatly enhance a museum’s collection,” said Curator of Collections Jodi DeBruyne.
According to a museum news release, “the acquisition represents the Juneau community, and the country, in 2016 as it wrestles with the practical relationships of recreational drug use and as it accepts cannabis into its lexicon of legally-traded drugs. Alaska has always been lenient with personal use marijuana, and now, as a legally traded item, cannabis enters our collective history and the Juneau-Douglas City Museum collection.”
The marijuana, receipt, employee-signed bag, and Rainforest Farms pin back button (JDCM 2016.27.001-2016.27.004) join a poster from the marijuana-themed 52nd Annual Legislative Skits (JDCM 2015.09.001), aptly titled “The Capitol’s Up in Skits” already in the City Museum’s collection.
Pictured is the cannabis, signed bag, pin back button and receipt, donated by James Brooks to the Juneau-Douglas City Museum.
