Cannabis Cares
Cannabis Addresses its
Social Equity Issues
By Justine Sutton
For hundreds of years in this country, not only have Black people been treated as if their lives don’t matter, but in the last many decades their communities have been systematically torn apart in the “War on Drugs” through racially biased policing and incarceration.
In Long Beach, aspiring cannabis entrepreneurs are frustrated with the city’s Cannabis Equity Program, whose services have consisted mainly of assistance with application paperwork. Applicants’ main obstacle is still the substantial amount of capital necessary to start their businesses.
Some cannabis companies and organizations are now working to right this injustice with social equity programs offering opportunities for education and employment in cannabis to those whose lives have been affected by its prohibition.
But positive movement is happening. A number of companies have implemented equity initiatives which are currently underway.
Last October was a milestone in terms of California’s cannabis social equity programs, when the Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC) announced the awarding of an additional $30 million in funding to be used for commercial cannabis equity programs for inclusion and support of those negatively or disproportionately impacted by cannabis criminalization. However, to paraphrase the Bard, the course of social equity never did run smooth. The city of Los Angeles has come up against allegations of unfairness in their application process for its social equity program. But plans to replace the first-come-first-served system are causing concern that reliance on a lottery system emphasizes chance without considering merit. 8
Cannabis by the Sea Fall 2020
