Biden announced this month an executive order to pardon federal, simple marijuana possession charges for thousands – an important 1st step, advocates say, to reversing decades of uneven drug enforcement policy that has historically burdened Black people:
A demonstrator waves a marijuana-themed flag in front on the White House. President Biden is pardoning thousands of Americans convicted of"simple possession" of marijuana under federal law.
"And while white and Black and brown people use marijuana at similar rates, Black and brown people have been arrested, prosecuted, and convicted at disproportionate rates." "The failed policies on drug criminalization have ensnared many on nonviolent, marijuana offenses," said Patrice Willoughby, vice president of policy and legislative affairs at the NAACP.
There are not currently any individuals in federal prison solely for simple marijuana offenses, so the order is not expected to lead to the release of any federal prisoners. "These pardons certainly have an impact of removing some of these collateral consequences for individuals," said Eliana Green, senior policy advisor at the Hood Incubator, a nonprofit organization for cannabis justice reform. But, she continued,"we definitely, at the state levels, need to be creating more record cleaning remedies for folks and avenues for folks to be able to remove these collateral consequences that are imputed on them.
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