The opening day of the Seattle Hempfest was cancelled for the first time in the event’s historical twenty-four year run. A downpour of rain, unlike what organizers had seen, along with some lightning, made it unsafe. However, the weather has turned for the better and the Hempfest is back on, starting with an all-star panel on the Ric Smith Hemposium stage that includes Cyd Maurer, the former KEZI Channel 9 news anchor out of Eugene, Oregon, and Charlo Greene, the Anchorage, Alaska, anchor that famously quit on live television to focus on (successfully) legalizing cannabis in “America’s Last Frontier”. Their panel, “Cannabigotry: We Legalized, Why Are We Still Fighting” included cannabis activist heavyweight’s Allison Holcomb (leader of Washington State’s I-502 legalization campaign); Leland Berger (longtime Oregon cannabis advocate and attorney; you can pick his brain at the upcoming OMMBC); Washington medical marijuana activist Stephanie Viskovich; and moderated by Dominic Corva, of the Center for the Study of Cannabis and Social Policy.

The topics the “Cannabigotry” tackles are very important for states that have legalized cannabis. While our first step is to end the arrest and prosecution of cannabis consumers, cultivators and providers, much work remains regarding employment law, real estate options, health care decisions and child custody law, just for starters. All of the bigotry that the cannabis community faces following legalization need to be tackled in the same way that legalization measures passed: education and organizing. Ending cannabigotry is really a continuation of legalization campaigns and is harder in many ways. It is much easier convincing voters that legalizing marijuana is a good policy decision for them, even if they don’t use marijuana, because they can realize that legalization saves them tax dollars and generates revenue for issues that they do care about, such as education and health care. It is harder to convince them that employers shouldn’t be able to fire marijuana users or that a medical marijuana patient shouldn’t lose custody to a parent that doesn’t use marijuana.

The private citizens, public officials and bureaucrats need to be educated on how cannabis actually works in one’s body and the latest science regarding its health benefits as well as the real-world facts on the ground (that communities that embrace sensible cannabis policies don’t have the sky fall down on them). After the facts are widely available and disseminated, then we must organize, both politically and culturally.

We must organize politically to push common-sense legislation, possibly starting with proposals that prohibit an employer from discriminating against an employee because he or she is a registered medical marijuana user or going even further to protect private, adult-use on an employee’s own time, especially if they don’t work in hazardous jobs. Additionally, we should organize with our dollars. We need to support businesses that have sensible cannabis policies and refuse to give our hard-earned money to corporations that unnecessarily discriminate against the cannabis community. We have to follow the lead of many people, like Charlo and Cyd, that have come out of the cannabis closet. The more that everyday Americans see talented, articulate people shattering stoner stereotypes, the closer we get to true freedom and equality and defeat cannabigotry once and for all.

Charlo Greene’s famous quitting on live TV (Warning: possibly NSFW language):

Cyd Maurer’s “coming out of the cannabis closet moment” (you can follow her journey at www.AskMeAboutMarijuana.com):

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.