Category: Social Equity
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Virginia Legalization Workgroup’s Report Released
On Monday, November 30, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam released “Report to the Virginia General Assembly and Governor of Virginia: Impact on the Commonwealth of Legalizing the Sale and Personal Use of Marijuana,” the Virginia Legalization Workgroup’s nearly 500-page report on how to go about legalizing cannabis in the state. The report had to be completed…
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D.C. Board of Elections Hears Arguments Surrounding New Cannabis Initiative’s Ballot Eligibility
Supporters of a new cannabis initiative made their case to the D.C. Board of Elections on Wednesday at a meeting to determine if the initiative met certain requirements to be put on the ballot in November. The New Modern-Day Criminal Justice Cannabis Reform Act of 2020 seeks to legalize commercial cannabis sales and fix the…
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Virginia’s Special Legislative Sessions Considers More Macro and Micro Cannabis Reforms
The special legislative session convened by Virginia Governor Ralph Northam began last week on Tuesday August 18, and among the issues discussed are ongoing changes both big and small to cannabis reform in the state. For months, advocates have pushed Northam on the issue of cannabis legalization—something Northam has been less vocal about even as…
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Virginia Medicinal Cannabis On Its Way, Maryland Medicinal Continues To Deal With Racial Equity
The Outlaw Report has been paying close attention to the cannabis reforms happening in Virginia this past legislative session including decriminalization of possession of up to an ounce of cannabis, a serious look at implementing legalization, and the establishment of a medicinal cannabis program. The speed at which Virginia has navigated these reforms has illustrated…
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Quick Hit: If You Care About Racial Equity and Cannabis Put ‘Pleasure Activism’ On Your Reading List
Following the police killing of George Floyd and the nationwide uprising against police violence that still continues (even if the media’s gaze at protesters across the country is not quite where it was a few weeks ago), many people—mostly white people—felt more than a little lost. To understand the extent of the problems with American…
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Maryland Cannabis Companies Called Out For Racism and Discrimination
Last week, a former employee of Baltimore County dispensary Charm City Medicus took to Twitter to describe how they quit working as a receptionist after they said dispensary owner Bryan Hill asked them to remove the letters “BLM”—for Black Lives Matter—written on their cheek. In response, the former employee who identified themselves as “Lynn” only…
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Concerned About Racial Equity In The Cannabis Industry? Consult The Accountability List
Cannaclusive, a website advocating for black representation in the legalized cannabis industry recently released The Accountability List. Posted as a Google doc and therefore “a living document,” The Accountability List gathers cannabis and hemp companies and details whether or not they are black-owned, the number of black people employed, and the company’s comments (or lack…
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Maryland Cannabis News in 2019 Revolved Around Racial Equity
This article is part of a three-part series that summarizes notable moments in cannabis from 2019 for Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia. “This is really, really complicated,” State Senator and co-chair of The Maryland General Assembly’s Marijuana Legalization Workgroup Bill Ferguson said back in June. He was talking about unpacking the contingencies, exceptions, and all…
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Unlicensed D.C. cannabis gifting shop raided despite starting transition to the legal market
This article was updated Mar. 8 to correct the spelling of Kaliiva and include comment from DLCP. The unthinkable happened for the D.C. unlicensed shops that chose to transition to the legal market on Wednesday. A placarded business, Kaliiva in Adams Morgan, was raided by D.C. police. Six employees were arrested, and the shop was…