Activism

The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), after months of considering qualified candidates, has hired activist Steve Hawkins to the position of executive director, the organization announced today via press release. Hawkins has spent three decades as an advocate, policy strategist, nonprofit leader, and foundation executive in the movement for criminal justice reform. His experience in public […]

Washington state’s cannabis caucus is poised to grow this year, with at least five candidates who are either cannabis activists, have worked in the industry, or currently own cannabis businesses running for state and local offices. Statewide elections Crystal Oliver — who owns an outdoor cannabis farm in Eastern Washington, is an executive assistant to […]

Derek Cloutier is the president and co-founder of the New England Veterans Alliance, a non-profit organization that helps veterans reduce their dependency on pharmaceuticals and advocates on behalf of veterans for improved access to medical cannabis therapies. In the following interview, Derek joins our host TG Branfalt to talk about the experience of veterans in […]

Brian Applegarth is the CEO and founder of Emerald Country Tours, founder of the Cannabis Trail, and founder of the California Cannabis Tourism Association. California is the country’s most recently legalized state and — as the birthplace of medical cannabis in the United States — it is steeped in cannabis history, culture, and heritage. Brian […]

Medical cannabis activist Dennis Peron, who is often credited as the “father of medical marijuana,” passed away on January 27 in a San Francisco hospital, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. A long-time cigarette smoker, he was suffering from late-stage lung cancer. Mr. Peron was best known as a cannabis and gay rights activist. Originally from New […]

Eaze is partnering with Oakland, California-based nonprofit The Hood Incubator in their efforts to bring social equity to the cannabis space. The Hood Incubator works with communities of color in the cannabis space and Eaze has promised $1 million in funding over the next three years to help bring cannabis industry opportunities to such communities. “We […]

Jedidiah Haney is a cannabis activist and entrepreneur who is an outspoken advocate for sensible cannabis regulations and opponent to the seemingly default legalization legislation, which hinges on price gouging and over-regulation. He is also the founder of Higher Influence, LLC and a founding board member of The Cannabis Alliance. In our recent interview, we […]

Michigan’s Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol submitted more than 365,000 signatures to state officials on Monday – 100,000 more than the 252,523 valid signatures required to put a ballot initiative to voters, paving the way for the issue to make its way to voters in 2018. Looking at the initiative The measure would implement […]

Members of the United Kingdom Parliament joined medical cannabis activists for a “cannabis tea party” outside Parliament as part of their efforts to legalize medical cannabis throughout the nation, according to an Independent report. Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran joined Labour MPs Paul Flynn and Tonia Antoniazzi and members of the United Patients Alliance in […]

Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge has rejected a proposed cannabis legalization ballot initiative over “ambiguities” in the measure which she claims are “sufficiently serious” enough to prevent the campaign from ballot consideration. In the Oct. 6 letter to Mary L. Berry, the named petitioner for the Summit-based Arkansas True Grass Ballot Committee, Rutledge says the […]

A ballot initiative in Athens, Ohio has been accepted which, if approved, would reduce penalties for misdemeanor cannabis offenses to the lowest penalty allowed by state law, the Athens Post reports. The Athens Cannabis Ordinance (TACO) seeks to remove the 30-day jail sentence and $250 fine associated with low-level cannabis crimes. The ballot approval comes […]

Three former professional athletes and a former Drug Enforcement Agency special agent are set to speak at the upcoming New Jersey CannaBusiness Association “Presents” event. The trade association has partnered with Athletes for CARE for the latest installment, set for Sept. 27 at Galloping Hill Golf Club in Kenilworth. Scott Rudder, a former New Jersey legislator […]

In less than two weeks advocates will bear down on the nation’s capital in an effort to lobby federal lawmakers on cannabis policy, as the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws hosts their annual lobby day and Hoosier Veterans for Medical Cannabis head to the District for a forum focused on veteran access […]

Roger Stone has responded to the boycott of the Cannabis World Congress and Business Expo by at least 30 exhibitors and speakers due to his involvement, telling LA Weekly that the protest is based on the “recycled” and “phony charge” that he is a racist and that it is organized by his enemies, namely David […]

A Minority Cannabis Business Association boycott of Roger Stone has led to an exodus of exhibitors and speakers from the Cannabis World Congress and Business Expo set for Sept. 13-15 in Los Angeles, California. Stone, a former campaign strategist for President Donald Trump, was invited to speak at the event after launching the bi-partisan United […]

The chairman of the German Association for Cannabis as Medicine, Dr. Franjo Grotenherman, has entered an “indefinite” hunger strike until Germany “decriminalize all citizens who need cannabis to treat their serious diseases,” according to a press release from Grotenherman published by MarijuanaPolitics.com. In the release, the long-time cannabis activist called Germany’s medical cannabis law “too […]

The co-founder of D.C. Marijuana Justice, Adam Eidinger, had possession charges that were levied against him following his arrest during an Apr. 20 demonstration in Washington, D.C. dropped after the Drug Enforcement Agency determined that the 78 joints found in his possession were less than the 2 ounces allowed under the District’s adult-use laws, the […]

One sentence in the 11-page ballot initiative to legalize cannabis for adult use in South Dakota could doom the entire proposal, according to a CBS News report. The section legalizing paraphernalia addresses the laws of “the state or subdivision” (cities or counties); however, the section legalizing cannabis use doesn’t include “the state or,” just the […]

Activists in Wichita, Kansas collecting petition signatures to reduce cannabis possession penalties were thwarted by police at City Hall who cited court decisions that interior spaces in public buildings are not unlimited forums for First Amendment activity, according to a Wichita Eagle report. The activists usually collect signatures on the sidewalk outside of the building, […]

A member of Britain’s House of Parliament has called on citizens to use cannabis at the Palace of Westminster, according to a Sky News report. MP Paul Flynn, of the Labor Party, said the act of civil disobedience is the “only way we can get through the common mind of the government.” “I would call […]

Sabrina Fendrick is the Director of Government Affairs for Berkeley Patients Group, a licensed medical cannabis dispensary serving patients throughout the greater Berkeley area. Prior to working at BPG, Sabrina spent seven years at the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) in Washington D.C. In 2010, she founded the NORML Women’s Alliance — […]

Advocates in North Dakota are finalizing their draft of a ballot proposal to legalize recreational cannabis use for adults 21-and-older hoping to gather enough signatures to bring the issue to voters during the 2018 midterm elections, the Bismarck Tribune reports. The drive is spearheaded by Dave Owen, a college student from Grand Forks, who said […]

Advocates in Missouri are gathering signatures for an unorthodox measure to legalize medical and recreational cannabis, MissouriNet reports. Unlike other initiatives, Steve Leck’s does not include an age limit for cannabis consumption and would allow people to drive under the influence of cannabis. Leck says the measure doesn’t include an age restriction because many children […]

Cannabis advocates in Michigan have cleared a procedural step in getting a legalization initiative in front of lawmakers and potentially voters, according to an Associated Press report. Having received clearance from the Board of State Canvassers, activists now have six months to collect and submit about 252,000 valid voter signatures to the state legislature. This push is being […]