By Leandre Johns, Flowhub.
The cannabis industry’s growth over the past few years has been undeniably strong. States like Illinois, Michigan, Colorado, and more are smashing sales records while retailers cash in on the continuously evolving “Green Wave.”
But how has this success affected those who have been most acutely impacted by the War on Drugs?
Cannabis’ recent legalization in many states may be a step in the right direction, but the wealth being amassed from the plant’s sales mainly goes to white business owners. In fact, it’s estimated that between 80% - 90% of the cannabis industry is run by white owners.
Several legal states have created programs to right this injustice. Social Equity Programs are popping up left and right, insisting that People of Color be afforded an equal opportunity to participate. Even private companies within the industry are stepping up to help.
But how beneficial are these programs actually shaping up to be? I spoke to three Black-owned dispensaries to gain further insight into their experience on what’s really happening with Social Equity in cannabis.
A staggering lack of social equity
Like many of the thousands of people with an active dispensary license in Oklahoma, Tiffany Johnson opened The Flower Spot to provide medicine to those in need.
She wants to leave behind a legacy. “As a Black woman with three black daughters, I want to leave them something besides my house and car. My goal is to leave them this business,” Tiffany said.
Opening a dispensary was much harder than Tiffany originally thought. She covered every start-up expense out of pocket. Even after purchasing the building, there was a tremendous amount of work that had to be done to meet state compliance requirements.
Though she searched for them, Tiffany couldn’t find any loans or grants to help her get started.The state of Oklahoma doesn’t offer any state-run Social Equity Programs and it’s no secret that finding funding for cannabis businesses is challenging due to the federal illegality of the plant.
So Tiffany works a second job as a nurse enduring the chaos caused by COVID-19 and its variants while running her dispensary. She wakes up and opens the shop, then works as a nurse during the day. Tiffany then goes back to the dispensary after leaving the clinic before going home. Once home, she grabs a bite to eat, changes clothes, and heads out to work the night shift.
Tiffany is no stranger to the hypocrisy that comes with cannabis. Her ex-husband served years in prison for a cannabis-related charge, leaving her without support and forced to raise three children on her own.
When cannabis was legalized, Tiffany expected to see government grants or loans to right the past wrongs of cannabis legislation, but hours spent searching left her empty-handed and disappointed. This is a journey that Tiffany has been left to undertake on her own.
The harsh reality of cannabis legalization
Mesai Coker co-owns a dispensary in Oklahoma as well, called Hybrid Cannabis.
Mesai is still awaiting inspections to get his doors open, but his excitement is growing as his lifelong dream of owning a cannabis business slowly turns to reality.
But Mesai isn’t from Oklahoma and neither are his business partners.
He originally hoped to open a dispensary in his home state of New York, but was shocked when he learned that obtaining a dispensary business license would cost $210,000. With these outrageous up-front costs, Mesai knew he wouldn’t be able to open up shop anywhere near his home.
While living in New York, Mesai was no stranger to the state’s harsh cannabis laws. He was regularly profiled, stopped, and even arrested, though Mesai suspects it’s because of the faint smell of marijuana on him.
Mesai fought back against New York State Police and filed a lawsuit. He eventually went on to win this suit and received a small payout from the state. An amount which he feels does not accurately represent the emotional toll that was taken on him by the unlawful arrest.
When speaking about the encounter, Mesai said “It turned into a half an hour harassment. This included going through my pockets, looking for things that weren't there, and next thing you know I’m in handcuffs and arrested for trespassing in my own neighborhood.”
Unfortunately, Mesai’s story is no different from thousands who lived in New York before cannabis was legalized. In fact, New Yorkers of color made up more than 94 percent of arrests and summons issued for marijuana violations and offenses in 2020.
The false criminal record given to Mesai by his encounter with police led to his employer refusing him an opportunity to work in education. He became limited in the work he was able to do, therefore limiting his income. This fact, combined with the high costs to open a dispensary in New York led Mesai to uproot his life and move to Oklahoma where applications are a fraction of the cost.
Fixing cannabis inequalities
Both Mesai and Tiffany agree that more needs to be done to help People of Color entering the cannabis industry. Especially those who faced criminal charges for cannabis in the past.
But they feel that the government should be stepping up to help, but few state governments are. Plus, the programs that exist are complicated, limited, and ultimately not yet making up for the damage done.
Instead, it’s been private companies leading the way for social equity in cannabis.
Both Hybrid Cannabis and The Flower Spot are beneficiaries of Flowhub’s Social Equity Program which offers free cannabis point of sale software valued at over $50,000 to eligible dispensary owners.
Kyle Mcbride, a current Social Equity license holder in Michigan, offered a slightly different viewpoint, saying “personally, I’m encouraged by what I see the state of Michigan trying to do as far as their development with Social Equity Programs. Their failure comes with the actual marketing and awareness of the programs to the public.”
It’s not just about creating programs for the sake of creation. They need to be accessible and available to everyone who can benefit from them. It should not be hard to find Social Equity Programs.
Outside of the necessary changes outlined above, there are plenty of other initiatives that must happen to improve equity in cannabis, such as:
- Federal legalization
- Widespread pardons
- Clear access to capital generated from tax dollars
There isn’t a single solution to make cannabis a diverse industry, instead we must reevaluate what states governments, federal legislators, and private entities are doing to ensure the best possible results are obtained.
I will be watching closely as social equity programs pop up and hope that everyone working in cannabis comes to an understanding of the importance that Black business owners have in cannabis.
It’s not just the right thing to do. It’s the only option if we want to see this industry succeed.
Author
Leandre Johns, Chief Operating Officer
https://www.linkedin.com/in/leandre-johns/
Leandre Johns is the Chief Operating Officer at Flowhub. He has extensive experience in technology, previously serving as a General Manager at Uber and currently advocating for and working to build Equal Opportunity in cannabis.
