legalizing
Removing criminal penalties
Legalizing is the process of making something lawful that was previously prohibited.
Governments legalize activities, substances, or practices by changing laws or regulations: Several states are legalizing recreational marijuana.
The word often appears in debates about drugs, gambling, or same-sex marriage.
To legalize removes criminal penalties and typically establishes a regulatory framework.
Amount owed, written
- statuteEnacted written rule
- amendmentChange to official text
- enactmentPassing into law
- ratificationFormal approval by authority
codification · law · regulation · policy · jurisdiction · ruling · vote · passage
Granting official permission
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- enforcementCompelling compliance with rules
- oversightSupervision or inadvertent omission
- standardsAccepted levels of quality
taxation · permits · zoning · restrictions · monitoring · inspection · authorization · certification
Justified claims to freedoms
- equalitySame status for all
- liberationRelease from constraint
- empowermentGaining authority or confidence
- reformImprove by correcting faults
social justice · civil liberties · activism · movement · petition · grassroots · coalition · normalization
bill
Amount owed, written
ratification · codification · law · regulation · policy · jurisdiction · ruling · vote · passage · repeal
licensing
Granting official permission
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- enforcementCompelling compliance with rules
- oversightSupervision or inadvertent omission
standards · taxation · permits · zoning · restrictions · monitoring · inspection · authorization · certification · quota
rights
Justified claims to freedoms
- equalitySame status for all
- liberationRelease from constraint
- empowermentGaining authority or confidence
reform · social justice · civil liberties · activism · movement · petition · grassroots · coalition · normalization · harm reduction
controversy
Prolonged public disagreement
- polarizationSeparation into opposing extremes
- ethicsStudy of right conduct
- moralityRight and wrong principles
opposition · backlash · taboo · stigma · dissent · activism · lobbying · protest · campaign · contention
- approvalsapproved, approve, authorizing, certification, endorsing
legalizingprohibiting
Making something illegal
banning · outlawing · criminalizing · forbidding · illegalizing
legalizingrestricting
Placing limits upon
suppressing · censoring · blocking · preventing · curtailing
legal, illegal, unlawful, legalize, legally, legalized, illegally, legality, legalization