Forum/Discussions

Last week the ‘Marijuana Policy Program’ (MPP), a national advocacy organization working to get marijuana legalized, held a fund raiser in lower Manhattan. The main attraction was New York State Senators Liz Krueger (D. Manhattan.), Diane Savino (D. Staten Island) and Assemblyman Richard Gottfried (D. Manhattan.). Several hundred people came and paid $250 at the door to hear these white politicians talk about legalizing marijuana in New York. Only a few African Americans attended the fund raiser.   Why?  

Based on my research, fear and ignorance is the main reason African Americans are not involved in getting marijuana legalized. The truth about marijuana (sometimes called weed, pot, trees, etc) is common knowledge. First, it’s far less dangerous than alcohol or tobacco. Around 50,000 people die each year from alcohol related accidents. Similarly, more than 400,000 deaths each year are attributed to tobacco smoking. By comparison, marijuana is nontoxic and cannot cause death by overdose. Medical researchers have found that marijuana is a valuable aid in the treatment of a wide range of medical conditions. Second, twenty (20) states have legalized ‘medical marijuana’. Attorney General Eric Holder said, "It will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana…” Furthermore, Governor Cuomo and Mayor Bloomberg support discrimination for possession of small amounts of marijuana. Enough said?

What concerns me most is our failure to capitalize on this unique opportunity to create jobs and wealth in our community. We’ve known for years about the gap in wealth between white Americans and African Americans. Just a few years ago, whites had about 22 times the wealth of African-Americans according to a study by the Urban Institute. Those numbers have gotten worse over the last five years during the so-called ‘Great Recession’. The biggest and sometimes only opportunity for African Americans to generate wealth during this time is selling ‘marijuana’. Many innovative ghetto ‘potpreneur’s’ sell Marijuana (sometimes called weed, pot, trees, etc). It is by far the ‘drug’ of choice to inner city consumers. America’s underground illegal marijuana industry is thriving like never before and raking in what's estimated to be tens of billions of dollars nationwide (see’ High Times Magazine’). We all know the local marijuana dealer who delivers marijuana to our door or the ‘weed spot’ around the ‘way’. They’re usually small time operators without much business knowledge but enough street smarts to get around the unconstitutional ‘Stop and Frisk’ programs that send so many young black men to jail. Truth be told, marijuana dealers are usually our friends and neighbors.

We now have a real chance to create ‘legal’ wealth and jobs in the new ‘Green’ initiative spreading across the country i.e. the ‘wealth’ created from the fast moving legalization of

marijuana movement in the United States. The Twenty (20) States that have legalized ‘medical marijuana’ have created booming marijuana industries that employ thousands of unemployed people from growers to sellers. Indeed, the legal medical marijuana industry has caused an explosion of farms, retail stores, and manufacturing facilities for everything from potency-testing kits to specialized agricultural equipment. Probably the fastest growing (and arguably most profitable) area of the marijuana industry is in the technology sector. There are marijuana phone apps, Facebook games, software, websites etc., and it seems like something new is popping up everyday. It’s a real chance for African Americans to get in on the ground floor and create some wealth.

Consider the fact that earlier this month State Senator Diane Savino called the odds for its legalization next year "quite good." Julie Netherland, deputy state director for the New York Office of the ‘Drug Policy Alliance’ said next year is “looking good”. And, President Obama and Attorney General Holder have both signaled there support for the bourgeoning marijuana industry. So, it’s not a question of whether or not New York will legalize marijuana. New York will legalize marijuana and sooner than you think. Let’s not get left behind ‘again’. Bust a move and get busy learning the business and mapping out a position in the new Marijuana Revolution. Let’s create some wealth in our community too.

Dennis Levy is Founder/Pres. of ‘The American Pot Smokers Association’. For more information: E-mail americanpotsmokers@gmail.com