Alex Rogers, the founder of Marijuana Politics (and my longtime friend), knows first-hand the harmful consequences of cannabis prohibition as he has seen the inside of a prison cell. While he didn’t serve the draconian prison sentence levied against Jeff Mizanskey or others sentenced to life in prison for marijuana, the 6 months that Rogers spent in prison were enough for him and he has since dedicated his life to help ensure that others don’t serve the same fate for marijuana.
Rogers was ensnared in a cannabis smuggling investigation and prosecution just as he was giving up the outlaw life. He, like many men, found a woman to share his life that convinced him to leave his illicit dealing behind. Unfortunately, Alex’s past caught up to him and he was arrested on an international warrant and eventually convicted for his part in selling 50 pounds of marijuana.
The Medford Mail Tribune reports:
Fast-forward 10 years, and Rogers has graduated magna cum laude from Southern Oregon University with a political science degree. He is chief executive officer of Ashland Alternative Health, with offices in Ashland and Eugene, which helps patients get medical marijuana cards, and he leads business conferences that draw marijuana entrepreneurs from around the world. He said his businesses gross about $2 million a year.
The outlook was much darker a decade ago. While Rogers recalls that on his first night in the Salzburg jail, he could see the church from the “Sound of Music,” shortly after he was sent to Stadelheim, a notorious European prison that briefly housed Adolf Hitler before his rise to power and was the site of prisoner executions by guillotine during World War II.
“It is probably one of the most sinister places,” said Rogers. Criminals from Russia, Eastern Europe and Turkey were his cellmates, including a psychopathic murderer. “Everybody’s got a shank,” he remembered. “Everybody’s in a gang.”
Even though many argued that Oregon’s Measure 91 legalization initiative would decrease the number of people seeking medical marijuana cards, Alex still supported the measure, even if theoretically it would hurt the bottom line at the medical marijuana clinics he owns. Rogers also knew that he, and many others, wouldn’t be happy with all of the rules and regulations that would be thrusted upon the cannabis industry, he still supported legalization, knowing that ending arrests and prosecutions for cannabis were of the utmost importance.
Keeping people out of prison and ensuring that patients have safe access to cannabis are still the underpinnings of Alex’s business interests. As lead producer of both the Oregon Marijuana Business Conference (OMBC) and International Cannabis Business Conference (ICBC), Rogers ensures that activism is always a focus and that attendees get the information necessary to comply with requisite cannabis laws. You can see Alex’s work up close and personal at the OMBC on November 21st in Ashland and at the ICBC February 13th-14th in San Francisco. And while Marijuana Politics covers the gamut of information that may interest the cannabis community, ending cannabis prohibition and keeping people out of prison will always be our main focus. In a day and age when too many people are entering the industry now that there is legal money to be made, it is refreshing to work with someone that keeps ending prohibition as the main focus.
Anthony Johnson
Anthony, a longtime cannabis law reform advocate, was Chief Petitioner and co-author of Measure 91, Oregon's cannabis legalization effort. He served as director of both the New Approach Oregon and Vote Yes on 91 PACs, the political action committees responsible for the state's legalization campaign. As director of New Approach Oregon, Anthony continues to work towards effectively implementing the cannabis legalization system while protecting small business owners and the rights of patients. He sits on the Oregon Marijuana Rules Advisory Committee and fights for sensible rules at the legislature as well as city councils and county commissions across the state. Anthony helps cannabis business comply with Oregon's laws and advises advocates across the country. He also serves as content director of both the International Cannabis Business Conference and the Oregon Marijuana Business Conference, helping share the vision of moving the cannabis industry forward in a way that maintains the focus on keeping people out of prison and protecting patients. He was a member of the Oregon Health Authority Rules Advisory Committee, assisting the drafting of the administrative rules governing Oregon’s state-licensed medical marijuana facilities. He first co-authored and helped pass successful marijuana law reform measures while a law student at the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law. He passed the Oregon Bar in 2005 and practiced criminal defense for two years before transitioning to working full-time in the political advocacy realm. His blogs on Marijuana Politics are personal in nature and don't speak for or reflect the opinions of any group or organization.
