Daily Archives: March 8, 2022

We're honoring women this month!

I was raised by a single mom who instilled in me the idea that knowledge is cumulative like a tower of many stones stacked on top of each other and that there is something to be learned from every experience no matter how heavy it might be to carry. Today is International Womens Day, and March is Womens History Month. This year, Im creating space for voices from the cannabis and psychedelic diaspora to express appreciation for the women in our community, and to pay respect to those who are no longer with us but whose contributions live on whose stones are the ones we lay ours upon.

Sara Rotman

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Sara Rotman, CEO and Founder of Wellfounded Botanicals

Founded by farmer and former luxury brand builder Sara Rotman, after experiencing a life-threatening battle with Crohns disease, Wellfounded Botanicals is a new woman and Latinx-owned cannabis brand dedicated to promoting plant-based wellness.

The success of the Wellfounded brand and Busy Bees Organics cannabis farm in which we grow our products rests entirely on the shoulders of the women at Wellfounded. We dont hire or assign team members because of their gender, but it just so happens that weve found the best people in the business, and they happen to be women. They have taught me so much about grace, perseverance, and how to thrive in a world which can be unfavorable to women. Im particularly proud of my legal team, Susan Petrovich and Amy Steinfeld, as well as our Chief Compliance Officer Carmela Beck and our EVP, Director of Brand, Kimberly Brower. Im lucky to be surrounded by women who inspire and support me and the Wellfounded brand - they remind me to maintain my integrity and commitment, agnostic of my gender.

Steven Jung, Chief Operating Officer of PAX

Before joining leading cannabis brand PAX, Steven Jung served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Weedmaps, the leading tech company serving the cannabis

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Steven Jung

industry. Jung brings an extensive career in operations, and began his career in operations leadership as a Captain in the United States Army where he held both strategic and tactical roles.

"I'm inspired by Stephanie Shepard who, after being incarcerated for cannabis, is now helping others find freedom and reentry support through Last Prisoner Project. Our country's approach to drug policy has caused irreparable and disparate harm no one should be in prison because of this plant. I'm incredibly grateful to Stephanie, and others like her, who are sharing their stories and doing this mission critical work to address decades of injustice and create opportunities for people in cannabis."

TaJanna Mallory, CEO of CannAssistants

Founded by TaJanna Mallory, CannAssistants is a virtual assistant agency that provides administrative support to mid-size cannabis companies, founders, and

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TaJanna Mallory

business executives. At the core of her work, Mallory believes the foundation of every strong organization is a steady and seamless support staff that excels in daily operations and exceeds client expectations.

I've been fascinated by the resilience that I've seen among women, especially in the past two years. In the cannabis industry, there's always going to be a fight until prohibition ends. I've watched women in this industry like Amber Senter and Chaney Turner, continue the fight for the greater cannabis community while still running their own businesses. "Pivot" is a word that has been exhausted since the pandemic. More than a pivot, I've witnessed women find new and creative ways to crush their obstacles while continuing to fight for the things they are passionate about.

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Susie Plascencia

Susie Plascencia, Brand Partner at Humo

A Spanish word for smoke, humo is the unmistakable result of cannabis when ignited. Humo Brand Partner, entrepreneur and cannabis advocate Susie Plascencia leads the pioneering, Mexican American owned craft cannabis companys commitment to providing meaningful representation in an industry that has caused disproportionate harm to Latino communities. Plascencia is especially passionate about Latina representation in the cannabis industry.

Womens History Month is especially important in the cannabis industry because its a time to recognize and celebrate the many contributions of those who are often underrepresented in positions of professional leadership. As a woman led company, Humo is so proud to align with queer and Chicana led nonprofit, The Social Impact Center. We understand that repairing the harm caused to communities by the War on Drugs begins with meaningful action and by supporting their transformative programs and criminal record expungement clinics, we know were doing our part to foster a more equitable industry while supporting women in cannabis. Im also personally a supporter of the great work of Women Grow, Supernova Women and Latinas in Cannabis, a nationally recognized online community I founded after seeing a need for Latina representation and empowerment in cannabis.

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Jeffrey D. Welsh, Partner, Vicente Sederberg, LLP

Jeffrey Welsh

Jeffrey Welsh is a partner at Vicente Sederberg LLP where he focuses his practice on advising companies, brands, entertainment and media properties, other law firms, and investors on how to navigate the California cannabis marketplace.

I've been incredibly blessed to have many inspiring female mentors throughout the course of my life, starting with my Mom, who instilled work ethic, drive, and unconditional love into the fabric of my being. My team at Vicente Sederberg is comprised of many thought leaders who I work with on a daily basis, including Cassia Furman, Shawn Hauser, Sahar Ayinehsazian, Andrea Golan, and Emily Hackman, to name a few! Throughout the industry at large, I am incredibly thankful to be colleagues and friends with Zoe Wilder, a tireless advocate for the plant and a tremendous ambassador to our industry. I am so thankful for all of the incredible women in my life! Love you, Mom!

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Angela White

Angela White, Equity for Industry Program Manager at Success Centers

Success Centers Angela White focuses on developing sustainable career and entrepreneurial paths previously less accessible to communities impacted by inequality and the War on Drugs.

Its always an honor for me to acknowledge all of the super sisters in cannabis who volunteer their time and talents to the equity community, and have made this work possible for the Equity for Industry Program. Our mission is to empower marginalized community members through education, employment and art programs, so they may develop a positive self-image as well as a sense of hope and purpose for their future. Grateful to all of the women in the industry who have helped us with this important mission! Shout out to Jessica Strange, Marie Montmarquet, Tiffany McBride, Alisha Johnson, Jasmine Hall, Liz Gehl, Dale Sky Jones, Summer Jenkins, Julia Jacobson, Reese Benton, Cindy De La Vega, Nicole Howell Esq, Rhiannon Woo and Merril Gilbert, Suzy Jones, Jennifer Lujan, Christina DaPaci, Hannah Stitt, Esq, and Paige Penbrook Esq. There are many more of you that may not be on this list but you are all deeply respected and appreciated.

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Shelby Hartman, Co-Founder & CEO of DoubleBlind

Shelby Hartman

Journalist Shelby Hartman was meditating when she had a vision to start a magazine focused on psychedelics. A media company and education platform at the forefront of the rapidly growing psychedelic movement, DoubleBlind reports on some of the most important issues of our time all presented in visually compelling, rigorous long-form features, poetry, art, and photo essays.

Much like in other industries, for decades, men in psychedelics have been platformed disproportionately, relative to women. I, by no means, want to diminish the incredible contributions that men have made to the psychedelic field, but, alongside them, there have often been women who have simply gotten less acclaim. Women such as Kathleen Harrison, Ann Shulgin, Bia Labate, and Amanda Feilding, not to mention the countless women, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, who have been holding space for others to heal for generations. I'm excited to see that changing, as well as to see all of the incredibly inspiring women who have begun to work in psychedelics in more recent decades: Natalie Ginsberg, Liana Gillooly, Lauren Taus, Charlotte James, Melissa Lavasani, my dear cofounder Madison Margolin...I'm almost reluctant to name names, because there's so many more, too many to name. I'm hopeful that this growing devotion to platforming women in psychedelics is a part of a larger movement towards inclusivity within the field, including making sure psychedelic businesses are prioritizing equity and access as well as Indigenous reciprocity. I do believe that if any industry is poised to reimagine what equitable and inclusive businesses look like, it's the psychedelic industry.

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[Disclosure: I am the co-founder and Chairperson of the Board for the non-profit Last Prisoner Project]

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Creating Space For The Cannabis And Psychedelic Diaspora To Honor Women - Forbes

Mandy Moore has announced details of her new album In Real Life and shared the records title track you can hear the new song below.

The record will be the follow-up to Moores March 2020 album Silver Landings, and is set for release on May 13 via Verve Forecast.

Produced by Mike Viola, In Real Life which has been previewed today (March 8) by the title track, which you can hear below features a host of collaborators, including Moores husband, Dawes Taylor Goldsmith, and his brother/bandmate Griffin Goldsmith, Lucius Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig, keyboardist Lee Pardini (The War On Drugs) and bassist Sebastian Steinberg (Sharon Van Etten, Phoebe Bridgers).

So much of this record came from future-tripping on the next chapter of my life and what it might look like: what parenthood would feel like, how it would change everything, and all the excitement and trepidation that comes with that, Moore said of In Real Life in a statement.

At the same time it was about celebrating and acknowledging where we were at the moment and really trying to be completely present in the everyday which is maybe the hardest part of the human condition.

Of the lyrical content of the album, Moore added: To me its all about staying open, staying aware, staying sensitive and empathetic to the people around me.

Theres something about expressing myself through lyrics and melody that makes me feel whole, and I see it as a privilege to have that outlet. And even though this album is very specific to me and my experience theres songs about my baby, my husband, my father, my friends I hope everyones able to see their own lives in it. I hope theyre able to come along on the journey with me, and put themselves in the drivers seat.

Moore has also announced details of a North American tour which will take place across June and July you can find details of the dates and tickets here.

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Mandy Moore announces new album 'In Real Life' and shares title track - NME

The bold new world of legal cannabis can feel a lot like the tired old war on drugs of the 80s and 90s, denying rest and relaxation for the L.A. entrepreneurs who sell us cannabis.

Only now, its no longer to ward us away from a relaxing high. Its all about the money.

Hot on the heels of reports that the sheriffs department and feds are raiding vans moving cash for legal cannabis businessesa move later given blanket acceptance by a federal judgecomes the raid last week on one of L.A.s most longstanding dispensaries, complete with guns drawn on owners and cash swiped from budtenders tip jars.

The raid on Boyle Heights TLC by Jungle Boys dispensary first came to our attention on Instagram, where the 16-year-old business detailed the unexpected appearance of roughly 20 undercover cars last Tuesday. Owners watched on video as employees were rounded up by a variety of law enforcement agencies including CHP, LAPD, and the Sheriffs Department.

As the legal business reached out to its attorneys, soon guns were being pointed at the owners heads, with orders to get on the ground and detainment for the ensuing hour.

Owner Ivan Vanorwick told High Times of the tense encounter, They wont talk to our lawyer. They wont look at the appeal paperwork they just basically said theyre taking all the money inside the building. Im like, wait, this is over the $66,000?

Indeed. All over a late payment, the business was already contesting with The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA). According to Vanorwick, the charge had previously been submitted to an appeals process, in an attempt to argue late fees racked up by Jungle Boys due to the agencys own inability or refusal to accept payments at the height of COVID-19 infections.

After TLC management was informed that the CDTFA was there to take all of the money, the agencys bill collectors took $174,000 out of the dispensary, and in a move straight out of the Sheriff of Nottinghams playbook, even pinched the contents of jars left out to collect tips for the businesses budtenders. In a subsequent post, we see video of the cops taking money straight from the register.

All of thisthe guns, the raid, the detainmentdespite the late fee reportedly totaling only $66,000, a drop in the pan considering TLC by Jungle Boys reportedly paid over $18 million to the agency last year.

In the original Instagram post, a TLC rep illustrates the insult offered to their injury, when some of the cops present asked how much money they could make cultivating marijuana themselves, all while other authorities employed money counting machines to take every dollar in the building before telling Jungle Boys they were free to open back up and leaving.

Noting how theyve been over taxed and over regulated, the post steams over how the California Cannabis tax system is broken and we will all be out of business while all these agencies continue to get bigger every day, echoing wider industry complaints in California over aggressive taxation dovetailing with poor representation.

The CDTFA, for its part, tells High Times, This is our standard procedure for cannabis businesses or any business. Were not singling out any industry or type of business. If you owe taxes in California, we do our best to collect what is due.

Despite it being 2022 and despite the countrys more open views towards the consumption of a plant that makes you feel good and treats long-term medical problems, deep issues persist that make entering or surviving the cannabis industry, which is now legal in 32 states, ever difficult.

The uncertainty extends to local ganjapreneurs like Jungle Boys, who were targeted with firearms over a late tax payment they were reportedly trying to legally contest. And also affects national cannabis connoisseurs, as well.

Last week, the news quietly broke that the Biden Administrations newly updated employee conduct guidelines will most likely deny security clearance to anyone who has invested in a cannabis business or in cannabis stocks, following 2021 in which actual White House employees were dumped over previous admissions that theyd inhaled.

The more things change, right?

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After Paying $18M in Taxes, Jungle Boys Raided For All Its Cash In Boyle Heights - L.A. TACO

(Photo: Adobe Stock)

Editors note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the authors own.Read moreopinionson theGrio.

There are so many times and so many ways Black people have become a political football in America. White people fought a war and almost broke up the country over whether or not we should be free. They started another war, the war on drugs, at a time when there wasnt a major drug epidemic because its easier to repress Black people when its crime or drugs or safe streets.

The recent war over critical race theory has been a novel way of using Black people as a political football or as a way to energize white voters and make them think theres a real threat to their kids that they need to stand up and fight. Once again, we are supposedly the threat that they need to fear. But in this conversation, we should put critical race theory in quotes because were not really talking about actual critical race theorythe legal theory that racism has shaped America. Were talking about critical race theorya right-wing bogeyman thats telling white adults that schools are teaching white children to hate themselves and feel guilty about American history and that it must be stopped.

A recent poll from CBS/YouGov sampling a robust 2,500 people found that despite widespread right-wing caterwauling about CRT, most Americans say they know little to nothing about CRT. Sixty-five percent say theyve heard either a little or nothing about it. The rights national PR campaign has largely fallen on deaf ears, and their messaging isnt in line with what most people think68 percent of those surveyed said, teaching about race in America makes students understand what others went through. Only 23 percent agreed with the GOPs message that it makes students feel guilty about past generations. Eighty-seven percent said books should not be banned for discussing race or depicting slavery. Most people do not want history to be erased.

This is largely good newsmost Americans disagree that teaching students about race and Americas dreadful history on race is a bad thing. Despite all the videos weve seen of people protesting school boards and all the Republican noise, most Americans have not even heard about CRT. The big schism in the poll is thisamong those who have heard of CRT, 81 percent of Democrats say they have a favorable opinion of CRT while 86 percent of Republicans say they have an unfavorable opinion.

So the Republican argument around CRT isnt winning over new voters, but it is connecting with people who are already in their tent. Once again, Republicans are using Black people as a political footballCRT is triggering white victimhood and motivating Republicans to vote. But most Americans see through this smokescreen.

CRT has become the rights new imaginary enemytheir old imaginary enemies include the people who stole the 2020 election, the people who vote illegally and are the reason why we need voter ID, the people who believe in climate change, whoever gave Obama a fake birth certificate, whoever really attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6. Its all part of this bizarro bubble they live in where facts go to die, Black people are the problem and whites are the real victims. The erasure of Black history is critical to maintaining that fiction. Still, for now, most Americans understand that what we call Black history is American history, and its valuable for Black and white children to learn it.

Tour is the host of the podcast Toure Show and the podcast docuseries Who Was Prince? He is also the author of seven books.

TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku, and Android TV.Please download theGrio mobile apps today!

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How Americans really feel about critical race theory - TheGrio

The General Assembly is considering legislation targeting a loophole in the states retail recreational cannabis law that has allowed gatherings like the controversial High Bazaar in Hamden, where vendors of marijuana flowers and related products gift them to paying customers in a party atmosphere.

Proposed new legislation would ban public gifting parties, with criminal penalties of a year in prison and $10,000 fines for violators.

The proposal drew opposition on Tuesday from Connecticuts cannabis community, who charged that the bill is an attempt to again criminalize the drug less than a year after the legislature legalized marijuana possession and set in motion a new retail industry that could begin statewide adult sales by the end of 2022, as well as recreational home growing in July, 2023.

Another section of the bill, which would ban billboard advertising for cannabis companies, was opposed by outdoor advertisers led by John Barrett, owner of the West Haven-based Barrett Outdoor Communications.

And state Rep. Juan Candelaria, D-New Haven, a longtime proponent of full cannabis legalization, warned that weaknesses in the social equity portion of the law - aimed at helping residents of neighborhoods adversely impacted in the failed war on drugs to obtain careers in the legal landscape - is being weakened by big corporations from out of state that are poised to take over Connecticuts budding, lucrative retail market.

Some of the language presented in the bill...in fact would re-criminalize this plant and would be a major step backwards for all, said Duncan Markovich of Branford, who told lawmakers that he owns a cannabis-related business. The citizens of the state of Connecticut and those of us specifically within the cannabis community, culture, advocacy and industry cannot fathom such draconian language around this plant. Enacting a law that criminalizes the giving of any of this plant-based medicine to our fellow family members, friends or even complete strangers is unethical, unfathomable and borderline nefarious.

For several months, as many as 1,200 visitors on a Saturday would attend the High Bazaar in a Hamden industrial park, with live music, open consumption of cannabis and dozens of vendors, until an injunction stopped the parties last month.

Giving away cannabis products should be no different than offering people vegetables from ones garden, Markovich said during a virtual public hearing on the proposal before the legislative General Law Committee.

But state Rep. Michael DAgostino, D-Hamden, co-chairman of the committee, said that while proponents claim they are not selling cannabis and cannabis-infused materials in the events, its plain that cash is going from the hands of people into the donation boxes - and vendors pockets - in exchange for the substances.

The committees intent, with this language, was to really prevent and rein in these retail gifting events that have been occurring in the state, which really are retail events, DAgostino said. Theyre just an end run around the permitting and transaction process that weve set up through our cannabis laws.

You cant give it away as part of a broader commercial transaction, said Michelle Seagull, the commissioner of the state Department of Consumer Protection, which runs the medical cannabis program and is in the process of creating the adult-retail system. It has to be a lot more than if you just gave it to a friend, Seagull said.

House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, a staunch opponent of legalized cannabis, said that societal issues are bound to emerge in the new market. He suggested banning cannabis smoking in public housing complexes, along with prohibiting cannabis-related billboards.

But Justin Welch, a member of the CT CannaWarriors and the New England Craft Cannabis Alliance, which successfully lobbied the 2021 legislation and which co-sponsored the weekly Hamden events, noted the danger and potential sanctimony of the General Assembly enacting a law that reimposes criminal penalties.

I use cannabis daily and rely on gifting for a variety of different reasons, Welch said in prepared testimony. I do not deserve to be punished for this, nor does anyone else. For too long now, good people have been persecuted for their involvement with cannabis. The grassroots cannabis community that exists here in Connecticut will not cease to exist, whether you pass this bill or not. Moving forward we need sensible cannabis policy that looks more like a craft beer policy.

Seagull, under questioning from the committee, stressed that her agency has no legal authority over the gifting parties or billboards that have become ubiquitous along Connecticuts interstate highways since last July 1, when cannabis possession became legal and state cannabis consumers were first directed to Massachusetts cannabis dispensaries.

House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, a staunch opponent of legalized cannabis, said that societal issues are bound to emerge. He suggested banning cannabis smoking in public housing complexes, which is not part of the pending proposal, and supported banning related billboards. Adults are going to find the product on its own, Candelora said. We dont have to advertise it.

DAgostino said that lawmakers seem restricted to either banning billboards or allowing them, with a likely First Amendment, free-speech court challenge if lawmakers approve the proposed prohibition.

Barrett, who is also president of the six-member Outdoor Advertising Association of Connecticut, which owns 88 percent of the billboards along state highways, said that unless all advertising for cannabis is banned in the state, billboard owners would be singled out in an unconstitutional manner under the proposal.

Candelaria, in dissecting the wishes of the bill proposed by the Social Equity Council that is setting up the framework for business opportunities in under-served communities, warned that the entire state industry might get taken over by corporate interests.

My concern here is that theyll corner the market, said the 20-year House veteran, a deputy speaker of the House.

Others who testified on the bill criticized the states 10-year-old medical cannabis program, charging that high prices and questionable quality is driving holders of medical cards to the High Bazaar and underground markets. A lot of the current producers and the dispensaries are out of state, Candelaria said. They are not people from Connecticut. Our intention was to ensure that equity applicants from our state have an opportunity to conduct cannabis businesses.

The deadline for the General Law Committee to act on bills is March 22.

kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT

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Legislation would prohibit cannabis gifting parties in CT with $10,000 fines - CT Insider