Last week, Cannabis Program Supervisor Dasheeda Dawson joined Dr. Kahlilah Brown-Dean on the Connecticut Public Radio show Disrupted to talk about equity in the cannabis industry, the City of Portland's restorative SEED Initiatives, and addressing the systemic harm caused by cannabis prohibition.
Despite the fact that Oregon legalized adult cannabis use in 2015 and that Portland is quickly becoming a national leader in sensible and equitable cannabis regulation, we are still seeing a disproportionate share of benefits between white communities and communities of color. Civic Life’s Cannabis Program is working to close that gap in many ways, especially through its Social Equity & Educational Development (SEED) Initiatives.
“If we’re going to make this legal to the point where states and the federal government are able to capitalize, literally capitalize as far as revenue is concerned, we must do the work to repair the communities that have been destroyed as a result of its prohibition,” says Dawson.
SEED Initiatives is a program designed to bring reparative and restorative justice to communities disproportionately affected by cannabis prohibition. The program monitors, measures, and reports on cannabis tax revenue and also provides the SEED Grant Fund. The SEED Grant Fund prioritizes BIPOC and women-owned small business initiatives and projects that support economic and educational development for Black, Indigenous, and Latinx communities.
You can listen to the full interview here for more insights into the past, present, and future of equity in the cannabis industry. Visit the Cannabis Program website for more information about our SEED Initiatives.