La Raza Cannabis Association Organizes Latinx Farmers

Photo of Pancho Villa courtesy of Wikipedia

By Sarah Russo

California-based activists are forming an alliance and support network for Latinx cannabis workers. “People think marijuana smoking came out of the 1960s when hippies discovered it. We [Latinos] have been smoking marijuana since the 1920s,” said La Raza director Miguel Molina, who knows all too well the racist roots of Reefer Madness and the repressive years that followed. Cannabis prohibition in the United States began as an anti-Mexican smear campaign and punitive anti-marijuana laws have functioned as an instrument of social control that continues to disproportionately target ethnic minorities, especially youth.

According to Molina, groups that advocate for the rights of immigrants and migrant laborers are apt to overlook those who work with California’s largest cash crop. La Raza has reached out to the United Farm Workers and other Latino farmers in search of alliances that will boost union membership and empower Latino cannabis growers at a time when the cannabis industry as a whole is in transition.

As the green rush picks up speed, La Raza reminds us not to forget those who are doing the heavy lifting.

Originally appeared on Project CBD | Versión En Español