The myth of social justice in the cannabis industry

Social justice is a facade in the cannabis industry as the challenges facing social justice and economic empowerment applicants increase

Despite industry assurances that social equality will create a level playing field, the majority of diverse license applicants and license holders believe the odds are against them, and they are right.

Limited access to grants, complex application processes, real estate valued well above market value and bureaucratic bottlenecks are common obstacles between Los Angeles and Boston.

Juan Aguirre had worked in Michigan as a nurse manager and medical marijuana supervisor before making important contacts in the field. He explained that if you’ve never managed a licensed facility, you probably wouldn’t know where to start.

The businessman was one of four social equity store owners who spoke about their difficulties using government initiatives to help them with their operations during the MjBizDaily organized Cannabis Social Justice Inquiry.

Challenges faced by marijuana social justice applicants

Lack of protection

Social Justice candidate Ryan Brown made an agreement with a landlord to keep property in central Los Angeles while going through the application process to obtain a delivery license. He said extensive administrative delays with the city’s Department of Cannabis Regulation (DCR) and other obstacles prevented the transaction.

Brown agreed to pay the $1,500 bail, but the landlord increased the price. The landlord later leased it to another business owner. Brown said, “In the end I lost the country.” Brown has been trying to get a marijuana permit under LA’s social justice program for more than two years.

During that time he has spent over $15,000 on various applications and city expenses. And nothing benefited from that. He claimed that the money he put into investments at DCR and elsewhere “just went down the toilet.” “DCR did nothing to protect me. I haven’t done any business for a day.

location challenges

Aguirre signed up for the Illinois Lottery in December 2019 by submitting ten entries worth $2,500.

This summer, after years of litigation, administrative delays, and challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic, the state finally issued its first 185 licenses to social justice applicants. Aguirre received Social Justice status after his company, Illinois Kindness, hired ten employees, half of whom had to meet one of the following criteria.

• Lived in a place where arrests for marijuana use were common.

• Has been charged or convicted of a cannabis-related offense.

• Had a close relative who had been jailed or convicted on marijuana-related charges.

His company received a temporary dispensary permit in late July in the Chicagoland area, one of the state’s 17 regions designated for cannabis businesses.

Aguirre’s next priority is acquiring real estate, which is a major concern for the majority of marijuana business owners. He told MjBizDaily that he’s still looking for a site that works for target customers. Once the setup is complete, they plan to sell the license to the highest bidder. This decision is largely due to investor impact.

The company is considering additional space in Pilsen, a thriving Latino and arts district on Chicago’s Lower West Side that has recently undergone a significant transformation to become one of the city’s thriving communities.

According to the retailer, the problem is that there aren’t many real estate opportunities available there due to the numerous zoning restrictions near churches, schools and other existing or potential pharmacies. He also claimed that multistate corporations took control of many high-level areas, limiting the map in the crowded city. You have these MSOs who have put their shares in places that they think are wonderful properties.

It’s worth noting that Aguirre recently lost a Democratic congressional primary in June while running on a platform for medical marijuana business potential, universal income, and healthcare.

law and disorder

The average amount applicants spend seeking New Jersey social justice is less than $1,000. Therefore, the high application fees plaguing operators in marijuana marketplaces across the state are less of a concern.

Real estate and money aside, one of their main concerns is finding affordable and reliable legal aid to help them navigate the state’s complex web of paperwork and other procedures.

According to Justin Crosgile, who received provisional approval from the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission for a retail marijuana license last summer, the legal aspect could be a concern. Crosgile has provided MJBizDaily with a letter of engagement from a law firm covering legal services for the preliminary application only. Her flat fee alone was $100,000.

On a new track

Nike John, a Boston native, couldn’t get the neighborhood’s approval on her own; She needed community outreach events, evidence of support from neighbors, and a letter from the local city council. This process took over a year.

The Boston Cannabis Board allegedly denied the Social Justice applicant’s initial application because she didn’t live close enough to the city and didn’t have enough local support.

The board also proposed conducting a $15,000 traffic study near the dispensary’s proposed site in Charlestown’s famous waterfront. According to John, she received more letters of recommendation than any other applicant accepted – more than 200. John, who grew up in the city and now lives in the Dorchester area, explained: “They didn’t want me to open up.”

She added that she was the first non-white candidate to open in a predominantly white neighborhood in Boston.”

She urged the city to commission a traffic study and revealed the storefront would not affect traffic. That paved the way for the license to be approved in May, six months after she submitted her first application. John is pleased that she followed her mother’s advice to work despite the hurdles in the cannabis market.

bottom line

Many people in social justice desire more significant improvements in their local communities, including increased diversity among business owners and leaders. Many of them entered the cannabis industry back then because there weren’t many minority owners and there still aren’t many. You should see more of this soon.

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