Lawrence Brown, author and cannabis equity advocate, wants to see medical cannabis dispensaries in Black areas such as NorthWest Plaza in West Baltimore.
He spoke to The Baltimore Sun in the parking lot of NorthWest Plaza, a shopping center on Northern Parkway in West Baltimore.
“We know from public health research that African Americans are disproportionately impacted by all kinds of disease and medical conditions.
City Councilman John Bullock, who represents parts of West and Southwest Baltimore, said it’s not surprising that Black neighborhoods in the city don’t have dispensaries — but that doesn’t make it right.
Brown became interested in opening a dispensary last year when he read about a new diversity fund launched by Curio, one of the state’s biggest cannabis companies.
Opening a dispensary can be lucrative — the median monthly revenue for a cannabis dispensary in Maryland was $450,000, or $5.4 million annually, state regulators said in a November report — but it’s also more expensive than other businesses.
Brown knew he couldn’t raise the hundreds of thousands of dollars needed to open a dispensary, but seeing Curio’s initiative gave him hope that he might raise just enough capital to participate.
“That’s where most of the resources are allocated in the city currently, so I wasn’t surprised to see the same pattern show up in cannabis dispensaries,” Brown said.
Brown thought maybe he could be the first dispensary owner in West Baltimore, but before he could start drawing up a business plan, he realized another problem.
There are no available licenses for Brown in Baltimore, unless he were to buy an existing cannabis dispensary, a proposition that would cost million of dollars.
Carter, who represents a large portion of West Baltimore, to develop legislation that would allow license holders to open four dispensaries per license, making it more likely operators would want to open in minority neighborhoods.
Hamilton told The Baltimore Sun that she believes having dispensaries in Black neighborhoods would reduce crime, add value to communities and create jobs.
According to a report from the American Civil Liberties Union, Black Marylanders were twice as likely as white Marylanders to be arrested for cannabis possession in 2018.
Johannes Thrul is a professor at the Johns Hopkins University, where he studies substance use.
“The other aspect to consider is these programs need funding.
But Brown said he will push the issue in the next legislative session — or consider some form of legal action.
“The longer this goes on, the more the damage, the harm and inequality is going to persist,” Brown said.