San Francisco politics is not for the faint of heart.
Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi’s tenure has been no exception. Sheriff Mirkarimi has fought off
scandal after
scandal after
scandal. Yet, he has held to his
long time progressive values, and persevered to serve his constituents. With the San Francisco elections on November 3, 2015, and with a progressive vs. moderate battle in full swing in the City, with its own
scandals and controversies regard
Google busses, gentrification from
Twitter and other tech businesses, it could be that the future of San Francisco is riding on his campaign.
However, Mirkarimi has some political allies – enter the marijuana industry. Bay Area reform advocate,
Debby Goldsberry, has joined his team, along with Dan Lind, a long time UFCW organizer, now retired, who was one the founders of their cannabis division. Goldsberry and Lind hope that a substantial amount of fundraising resources can be sourced from the cannabis crowd. You might ask, why would supporters of marijuana and drug policy reform be supporting the top cop of SF? Well, it just so happens that
Sheriff Mirkarimi has some of the most
progressive views in the country on
drug policy and prison reform.
“It is imperative that the cannabis community steps up to assure that the State’s most cannabis friendly sheriff stays in office,” Goldsberry says. “As a member of San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors, he helped implement medical cannabis regulations that are replicated nationwide, and as sheriff, he has consistently spoken out against wasting money enforcing outdated cannabis laws. People need to get involved and donate to the campaign, to make sure we step forward, not back, in San Francisco.”
Goldsberry is seemingly correct in her assessment. Sheriff Mirkarimi’s record shows a drastic reduction in arrests,
drug prosecutions and
jail time.
Alex Rogers is co-owner of Marijuana Politics. He is an experienced cannabis law reform advocate, getting his start in the 1990s under the tutelage of legendary activist Jack Herer.
Alex is also CEO of Ashland Alternative Health, and Northwest Alternative Health, medical cannabis clinics that help register patients with the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program. Additionally, Alex is the executive producer of industry business conferences that work to further professionalize and mainstream the cannabis and hemp industries. He started the Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference (OMMBC), the first medical marijuana business conference of its kind in Oregon. Following the success of the OMMBC, Rogers started organizing the first International Cannabis Business Conference (ICBC), a unique event bringing in activists and entrepreneurs with valuable experience from across the globe.
