It was shortly after stores were opened in Denver that a Denver Post reporter observed that the stores were tending to cluster in certain neighborhoods. In looking at this in Colorado, Washington, and Oregon that pattern was confirmed, as well that the ownership of the cannabis businesses was nearly 100% white males.
Thus was spawned “Social Equity” in the cannabis biz. The reaction to these observations from the majority of the cannabis culture was “Oops. Now what?” And they were truly blindsided by it.
In a few years the new legalization laws included equity clauses, none of which had ever been tried. As I write this, there still isn’t a good solution to this problem anywhere.
But every state in the union must now deal with it, including Washington who had passed cannabis legalization laws before the idea of equity came about. And that is what the legislature is debating now.
Racism, the war on drugs, money, taxes, and cruel prison sentences are the issues of equity, and every elected rep in any state has an itch in his crotch on at least one of these topics.
If Washington passes a law, it will be entirely a shot in the dark whether it works or not.
Here’s my personal opinion: The one and only key to getting into the marijuana business is money. If you want certain folk in the business, you give them money. Nothing else has worked.