New Campaign Seeks To Advance State-Level Cannabis Pardons And Policy Change

The Last Prisoner Project (LPP), a non-partisan nonprofit organization committed to cannabis criminal justice reform, has launched a new campaign called "Pardons to Progress" to advocate for state-level cannabis pardons and policy change. The campaign aims to encourage governors across the United States to issue clemency grants to those incarcerated on state-level marijuana charges, following President Biden's example in October 2022, when he pardoned over 6,500 people convicted of federal marijuana possession offenses

President Biden also called on governors to take similar action on the state level, where the majority of cannabis-related convictions occur, stating, "Just as no one should be in a Federal prison solely due to the possession of marijuana, no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either."

The campaign highlights the fact that millions of people have been arrested and imprisoned for an activity that many states are now profiting from, and the consequences of these convictions can follow individuals long after they've completed their sentence. A cannabis offense on one's record can impose unnecessary barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities. Furthermore, Black and brown communities have been disproportionately impacted by these arrests, prosecutions, and convictions.

The Pardons to Progress campaign aims to provide the public and governors' offices with the tools necessary to make mass, state-level cannabis pardons a reality. To learn more about the initiative, visit www.pardonstoprogress.com.