Mary Jane Rathbun became known as Brownie Mary for baking and distributing cannabis brownies in San Francisco. Many of her customers were gay men. When some began developing AIDS in the early 1980s, she noticed that cannabis helped with wasting syndrome. She also found this to be true for cancer patients. People donated cannabis, and she began making hundreds of brownies and giving them to sick people free of charge.

On our YouTube channel BufferZone, we explore fascinating stories across history, art, and culture, bringing remarkable people and forgotten events back into the spotlight. Brownie Mary’s story is one such remarkable chapter. Despite being arrested three times, she continued her activism and volunteered in the AIDS ward at San Francisco General Hospital. Working alongside Dennis Peron, she helped advance medical cannabis access. Their efforts contributed to San Francisco Proposition P in 1991 and California Proposition 215 in 1996. Her 1992 arrest also helped inspire proposals for clinical trials involving cannabis and people with HIV.

Source:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brownie_Mary

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