In Trenton Wednesday, advocates demanded justice for those hit hardest by the war on drugs. As the state’s recreational cannabis industry takes off, advocates of drug policy reform are reminding lawmakers of the promises made to reinvest tax revenue from legalized sales of recreational marijuana in communities where marijuana-related arrests have been highest.
Under state law, 70% of the tax collected from recreational marijuana sales is required to go toward communities most harmed by marijuana-related arrests. In Trenton, the advocates rallied for transparency as New Jersey begins to collect that revenue. “The reality is that when they came into our communities for the war on drugs they didn’t take 60% from our fathers, grandfathers and uncles, they took 100%. So we are calling for 100% reinvestment within our community,” said Solomon Middleton-Williams of the Newark Community Street Team.
