Illinois stood to become a model for diversifying the marijuana industry in other states when it legalized the drug last year. So far, its success is half-baked
for marijuana-related crimes nationwide, even though they have similar rates of usage. States and cities across the country have tried to ensure that communities disproportionately hurt by criminal penalties on marijuana are able to reap the financial benefits of legalization. But so far those efforts have largely failed, and the rapidly growing industry —
“We started with the premise that you cannot normalize and legalize an activity for whom prohibition of the same activity destroyed whole communities,” Hutchinson said.Cannabis entrepreneurs are disheartened that nearly two years after recreational marijuana was legalized in January 2020, they have yet to secure licenses. Meanwhile, established — mostly white-owned — medical cannabis companies were allowed to expand their foothold as new entrants lingered in a novel process.
Illinois’ latest legal fumble emerged a few weeks ago after applicants from earlier lotteries for dispensary licenses say they were wrongly left out of the process because of a clerical error. As a result, the state has put the distribution of all licenses on hold. So far, 185 conditional dispensary licenses have tentatively been awarded. In all, Illinois plans to hand out 500 licenses through a lottery process that is designed to benefit applicants who are from minority communities, women and veterans.
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