UMass Symposium Follow-up!
"If all we ask for is 'equity,' there will never be justice." Thank you UMass Law Review!
UMass Law organized a Symposium on "Social Equity in the Cannabis Industry” based on two of my papers recently published in the UMass Law Review. A full write-up of the event is available here.
(Part 2) Garrett I. Halydier, We(ed) the People of Cannabis, in Order to Form a More Equitable Industry: A Theory for Imagining New Social Equity Approaches to Cannabis Regulation, 19 U. MASS. L. REV. 39 (2024), https://scholarship.law.umassd.edu/umlr/vol19/iss1/2/.
(Part 1) Garrett I. Halydier, We(ed) Hold These Truths to be Self Evident: All Things Cannabis Are Inequitable, 19 U. MASS. L. REV. 39 (2024), https://scholarship.law.umassd.edu/umlr/vol19/iss1/2/.
The talk was titled "We(ed) the People of Cannabis, in Order to Form a More Equitable Industry: A Theory for Imagining New Social Equity Approaches to Cannabis Regulation."
A quick excerpt from the talk: "To address societal inequities requires societal level solution. Social equity as an administrative concept can only plug the holes left in the execution of legislation, but it cannot form the basis of the legislation itself.”
"The level of legalization is the single largest lever in pursuit of justice. If the default is legality, then everyone has an opportunity to act without fear of reprisal for simply engaging with the industry, and we can provide resources to address resulting inequities over time. But if we only let a few people act legally, while continuing to criminalize all other activity, is it any wonder that inequity thrives?"
I also served on the panel: "The History of Social Equity in the Cannabis Industry."
Two panels were presented. "The History of Social Equity in the Cannabis Industry" featured Timothy Shea, Esq., former acting administrator of the Drug Enforcement Agency; Thomas Quinn, Esq., district attorney of Bristol County, MA; Alexis Tkachuk, Esq., director of the MA Office of Emerging Industries; and Halydier. UMass Law Professor Hillary Farber served as moderator.
The second panel, "Implementing and Redefining Social Equity in the Cannabis Industry," included Kyle Potvin, Esq., inaugural director of licensing in the investigations and enforcement department at the MA Cannabis Control Commission and a graduate of UMass Dartmouth and UMass Law; Jason Ortiz, director of strategic initiatives for the Last Prisoner Project; Ulysses Youngblood, Major Bloom’s founder and president; and Phil Silverman, Esq., a partner in Vicente LLP’s Boston office.
Thank you to the UMass Law Review team for this incredible opportunity!
