Senator Chuck Schumer And Former NBA Star Al Harrington Talk Weed Legalization And Banking Reform

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and former NBA player Al Harrington, who is also the CEO of cannabis producer Viola Brands, spoke with Yahoo’s Marquise Francis about federal cannabis legalization and banking reform for the industry.

The legalization of cannabis in Ohio now means that national support among Americans includes more than half the country. Francis asked Schumer why some legislators are still not on board.

In response, Schumer said many of his colleagues haven't “caught up to the times” and are still afraid of long-held fears that cannabis legalization will usher in crime and addiction.

“And guess what, none of that happened. State by state legalized. And the scare tactics of those who are opposed to legalizing marijuana sort of didn't meet the facts in these states. But you still have a lot of legislators who are still back in that world,” Schumer said. 

Despite the reluctance, there is still forward movement with the recent passage of the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation Banking Act, or SAFER Banking Act, which Schumer noted includes expungement. The SAFER Banking Act was crafted to enable legal cannabis businesses access to banks and financial institutions, which up to now had been off limits.  

“And we need your viewers to call their senators and say, 'Vote for the Safer Banking Bill.' It's bipartisan. It has support in the House. We could make it law soon if we get those three, four more votes,” Schumer said.

In the interview, Francis turned to Al Harrington, owner of one of the largest Black-owned businesses in the cannabis industry, which is less than 2% Black. He asked how cannabis banking reform would help minority cannabis entrepreneurs achieve equity.

Harrington pointed to cannabis criminalization that has disproportionately affected the Black community for years.

“You know, 85% of our drug arrests in Black communities were cannabis-related, you know. It's crazy. So, we definitely have to have a seat at the table and that's something I'm definitely fighting for every day,” Harrington said.

“But we do need some help from legislators and different things like that to move this thing forward because there's been a lot of blood, sweat and tears to get us to this point, and it's really sad to see a lot of the legacy people fall by the wayside because of these barriers,” he added, referring to people who were part of the cannabis industry long before the legalization movement and who have skills to contribute.

Schumer then jumped in, saying “Our bill tries to rectify some of these injustices, but so much was taken out of minority communities in terms of human resources and in terms of money and everything else when cannabis was over-criminalized.”

Francis also asked Schumer if he's ever partaken, to which the senator responded, "I never have because when I was in college, it was illegal. I didn't want to. But I believe in, you know. I believe in it. I believe as strongly as anybody else."