It's no secret that marginalized communities, especially Black, Brown and Latinx folks, have suffered greater legal consequences and stigmatization from cannabis use than white people. This is largely because of the historic (and still current) racial discrimination that grew due to our government's prejudiced propaganda around smoking weed, as this form of cannabis consumption was popularized by people coming from Mexico to the U.S. in the first few decades of the 1900s, plus the impact of the War on Drugs starting in the 70s.
Here are 5 impactful and pretty simple actions that can be done on a regular basis to continuously bring equity into the cannabis industry and some healing to the lives of people affected by social injustice. (Equity is different from equality because equity focuses on supporting people with varying needs and catering to their specific circumstances, while equality gives people the same resources & support regardless of circumstances. Equity is more intentionally supportive.)
We can prioritize shopping minority and Black-owned cannabis products and dispensaries. Some of my favs are bud from Ball Family Farms, Farmer and the Felon and CAM. (While I don’t believe Farmer & the Felon is minority owned, they’ve built a very supportive platform for social justice for cannabis prisoners.)
Businesses can hire people into our companies that were previously incarcerated for cannabis or have been a part of the industry since before it became legalized.
We can support and be involved with causes that are working to decriminalize the plant, expunge cannabis convictions and reform the industry in other ways - like they're doing at Cage-Free Cannabis, Last Prisoner Project, and the Minority Cannabis Business Association.
We can have louder conversations about our consumption and the benefits it brings in an effort to de-stigmatize and normalize use in a way that supports wider accessibility to those that need the plant, as we're doing here at Pretty Stoned Art.
We can consume books, movies, and other media that centers the experience of Black, Brown, & Latinx cannabis users. A few resources to start with are "Green Renaissance" by JM Balbuena, "Grass is Greener" on Netflix and the Cannabis Diversity Report podcast.