The Marijuana Policy Project’s new executive director, Adam Smith, and longtime state policies director, Karen O’Keefe, have been fighting for cannabis policy reform for over two decades.
In the latest episode of Weed Wonks, Strategies 64’s Jordan Wellington sits down with the veteran legalization activists for an in-depth look at how the reform movement won hearts and minds and built pathways for ending marijuana prohibition.
Karen demonstrates why Adam considers her the “best legislative mind in cannabis” and discusses how the movement can shift the messaging away from the criminal justice angle to one that focuses on civil rights and social justice.
Adam explains why the future of legalization remains uncertain despite the progress that has been made, and he discusses why the cannabis industry must support efforts to fend off the “rearguard campaign” of “neo-prohibitionists” seeking to roll back reform.
