Equity Is What We Are Owed... It's NOT A Handout!

By Frederika Easley ( The People's Holdings)

Words have power. I have been doing a lot of thinking about how equity is inappropriately used, incorrectly interchanged, and in some cases, appropriated. The NY state body is working through differences between the MRTA (legislative bill) and CRTA (Cuomo’s bill). Senators Schumer, Booker, and Wyden state the MORE Act will be taken up again this year at the federal level. How equity is being used both at the state and federal level is not in line with what I understand equity to be. The cannabis industry will be one of the largest industries in the twenty-first century. It is crucial, right now, to know how it affects you, your neighbors, and your community. To do that, we must have a clear understanding of equity.

According to Webster, equity is “justice according to natural law or right specifically: freedom from bias or favoritism.” As NY legalizes cannabis, harm and privilege must be acknowledged, harm must be repaired and justice provided to give back what is deserved. I am using the word “deserve” because it speaks to something that is earned-- it should NOT be considered a handout.

We know there has been disproportionate enforcement on Black and Brown people in the War on Drugs. We have lost our lives! Many of us have been locked up and made second-class citizens unable to receive financial assistance for things such as housing and tuition. Others, relegated to a new form of slavery in the prison industrial complex. Communities have been ravaged and families destroyed. A price has been paid!

Politicians and corporations have co-opted talking points and made “equity” into a buzzword for their benefit. In their version of equity, it does not require harm to be repaired only acknowledged. It does not deal with the reality and consequences of cannabis prohibition. They can never repair the harm, but they can make sure that harm is not repurposed in the future and that the industry itself is equitable. That is what is necessary if the intent is truly to create an industry like no other.

When we see language around legalization that focuses on revenue for budget repair, corporates being given early entry, record expungement not being automatic, and the least amount of funding--in essence, pennies allocated to people and communities that have been harmed; then there is no equity.

Equity is what is owed to us! The ability to consume without further criminalization is what we need. We the people must continue to put in the work to ensure that we get what is owed to us. We want legislation and regulatory commissions that reflect the people and make rules that benefit our advancement. What we are demanding is NOT a handout, it is our legacy.