Despite legalizing cannabis in 2014, Oregon still has a lot of work left to do regarding marijuana, from doing better to ensure that low-income patients have safe access to automatically expunging old convictions (without making people pay extra money and jumping through unnecessary bureaucratic hoops). Additionally, cannabis cafes and other consumption sites are needed. I’m proud to be working on an effort to legalize cannabis consumption spaces along with my activist friend and colleague Sam Chapman. We founded the New Revenue Coalition PAC to lobby the Oregon Legislature to legalize consumption spaces and to take the proposal directly to voters at the ballot box if necessary.

You can learn the latest at the International Cannabis Business Conference in Portland, this September 27th-28th (GET YOUR TICKETS HERE), as I will be moderating a “The Future of the Oregon Cannabis Industry” panel that includes Sam, Casey Houlihan of the Oregon Retailers of Cannabis Association, Adam Smith of the Craft Cannabis Alliance and Oregon State Senator Floyd Prozanski. The Willamette Week recently covered our efforts to bring Amsterdam-style cannabis cafes and other job-creating-and-revenue-generating businesses to Oregon:

WW: What are the campaign’s major and minor objectives?

Anthony Johnson: The main objective is to bring more fairness and equality for adults that utilize cannabis, especially low-income patients. Too many people don’t have a safe place to legally consume cannabis out of public view due to their rental and housing agreements, which disproportionately impacts people of color and folks suffering through poverty. The bonus objectives are to create more jobs and revenue by allowing for consumption within cannabis businesses. Who benefits from laws allowing social consumption?