When Desiree Ivey and Cherron Perry-Thomas, founders of the Diasporic Alliance For Cannabis Opportunities (DACO), attended a cannabis conference in Las Vegas, they quickly realized there were not many others who looked like them. Instead of being discouraged, the two conceptualized change and decided to create their own. From this, the 2018 Cannabis Opportunity Conference was born.

The conference, which took place Oct. 19-20 at the Temple University Medical Center in Philadelphia, centered around conversations on cannabis options for wellness, social justice and economic empowerment. Free to the public, conference goers heard from cannabis experts and advocates, like Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ).

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“The legal cannabis industry is rapidly growing […], but less than 20 percent of all business owners and employees are non-white,” Perry-Thomas said in a press release sent to Blavity. “We at DACO want to change that by reducing the stigma around cannabis and introduce the limitless opportunities to marginalized communities.”

Source: Two Black Women Launch Cannabis Opportunity Conference To Increase Minority Presence In Marijuana Industry