Virginia Minority Cannabis Coalition

Virginians cannot wait for cannabis equity

About

Who We Are

The Virginia Minority Cannabis Coalition (VMCC), headquartered in Newport News, is a pioneering 501(c)4 nonprofit organization founded in 2021 that empowers Black and Brown communities to become shareholders in the cannabis industry.

We are professionals, business owners, adult learners, advocates, and everyday people who want to ensure that Virginia’s newest industry creates real economic change for communities of color that have been hit hardest by unequal cannabis laws.

Why We Do This

Empowerment

Expungement

Inclusion

We focus on three key areas of cannabis legalization – economic empowerment, expungement and inclusion. Our vision is that everyone arrested or in jail for cannabis is released with a clean record and that BIPOC across Virginia will have an opportunity to create true wealth for themselves, their families, and communities.

Economic Empowerment

The emerging cannabis industry is a brand new industry still in the early stages. Anyone has the chance to create generational wealth for their families and communities and be a part of a budding economy. We do this through our cannabis business and entrepreneur boot camp where we provide you with the foundational knowledge, tools, business connections, and strategies to take full advantage of a multi-billion dollar industry right here in Virginia.

Expungement

BIPOC communities have borne the brunt of legal trappings of cannabis prohibition. We are nearly 4 times as likely to be arrested and 8 times as likely to be jailed for cannabis. Those criminal possession records create monumental barriers to getting jobs, housing, and any federal assistance. VMCC believes that the automatic expungement of those records to give people a new lease on life is essential to cannabis legalization. There is no justice in Virginia Cannabis Legalization without AUTOMATIC expungement.

Inclusion

The cannabis industry already has a problem with wealthy white men dominating this space. That means its essential Virginia legislation develops a comprehensive equity program that not only gives the BIPOC community access to cannabis licenses but also provides the capital to launch those businesses. We are working directly with the state as a part of a working group to do just that. We’d love to hear from you and what you think is important for communities to be able to get a leg up in Virginia’s cannabis ecosystem.

Upcoming

Events

Cannabis Opportunity Movement - Preparing for the Green Rush (Online Event)

Saturday, August 27, 2022 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM EDT

Sixth Mt Zion Baptist Temple Campus (STREM Center Bldg)
3100 Butternut Drive
Hampton, VA 23666

Accepting social equity is the beginning of Virginia acknowledging the residual impact of the slave trade, Jim Crow, redlining, voter suppression, lynching, underfunded school systems, cannabis convictions, illegal searches and economic apartheid. The commonwealth of Virginia can lead the new south by being the first mover in the region to acknowledge the impact of predatory policing in the black community.

We’re inviting families and individuals to come to LOOK, LISTEN and LEARN about key points of interests for black Virginians over the next 18 months.

VMCC’s strategies, resources and program will focus on:

Racial disparities in marijuana arrests

While we share concerns for all minorities, our primary focus in this project is the disproportionality experienced by the black community in Virginia. We are working to prevent the same misfortune the state of California experienced, where white-owned, well-funded companies rode the legalization wave at the expense of African Americans.

If you want to…

Own a cannabis dispensary or grow farm

Learn how to protect yourself while following the law

Be a the front of the line for future cannabis jobs

THEN GET YOUR TICKET TODAY!

Other Events

You can join VMCC at one of our upcoming opportunity events or make your voices heard on our webinars. VMCC is committed to hosting events that give our community access to actionable information. We want to BIPOC in Virginia rise up and create true economic change for themselves.

Boot Camps
Podcasts
Membership launch
Business leadership workshops
C.O.M. Events
Pitch competitions

In the News

Media

Paul McLean: We Need a "Come to Cannabis" Moment

May 19, 2022 – This week, Paul McLean, founder and executive director of the Virginia Minority Cannabis Coalition, discusses his efforts to empower black and brown communities to become cannabis shareholders while educating politicians who still believe the plant is nothing more than the “devil’s hay.”

View story on cannabisequipmentnews.com

Columbia Care Kicks Off Sales At Boston Cannabist Dispensary, Announces Social Equity Partnerships In Virginia

September 30, 2021 – (BENZINGA) — Separately, Columbia Care revealed it has teamed up with three organizations – BIPOCANN, Virginia Minority Cannabis Coalition and Nolef Turns to offer social equity-driven resources for the developing cannabis community in Virginia.

Read full story on benzinga.com

Only on 10: A new partnership hopes to create greater cannabis equity for people of color

September 28, 2021 – PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — As marijuana laws changed in the Commonwealth earlier this year, organizations are coming together to make this completely new, legal business more accessible and equitable for the communities impacted most by its prohibition in the past.

View story on wavy.com