The President Joe Biden celebrated the Juneteenth holiday by issuing a Proclamation promoting his directive to review scheduling and pardon marijuana for all.
The president’s proclamation highlights the various efforts made by his administration to combat racial injustice, including the cannabis clemency decision last year.
“I’ve taken action to reform marijuana by pardoning District of Columbia and Federal simple possession offenses, and directed a revision of marijuana scheduling,” Biden stated in reference to the federal holiday that was created under legislation he enacted in 2021.
The president has promoted cannabis initiatives, linking them with the administration’s efforts to promote racial equality.
Biden, speaking at the National Action Network (NAN), a Martin Luther King Jr. Day event in January, said that he kept his “promise” by providing relief for those who have been criminalized because of cannabis.
Biden celebrated the end of Black History Month in February by promoting the cannabis clemency measures, and highlighting marijuana enforcement’s disparate racial impact.
In a factsheet released in advance of Biden’s State of the Union speech, the White House also claimed that the pardons of the president could lift social and economical barriers.
In the same month, the President signed a separate executive order on equity in the White House and federal departments . This executive order also mentioned earlier marijuana pardons.
Biden declared April to be “Second Chance Month”. He also used the opportunity in his document to highlight the collateral effects of cannabis convictions.
The administrative review of cannabis scheduling continues.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and specifically the Food and Drug Administration, are tackling the first phase of the review process. They are assessing the scientific evidence of cannabis in order to determine if it should be removed as a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act.
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HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said to Marijuana Moment in a recent interview that he hopes to implement the President’s scheduling directive before the end of the year.
The leaders of the marijuana reform movement in Congress have expressed their encouragement at this timetable.
Earl Blumenauer, co-chairman of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus and Rep. Earl Blumenauer D-OR told Marijuana Moment that he would be disappointed if significant progress was not made within the next year. “This long-overdue action should be taken with a greater urgency.”
Blumenauer, along with 15 other members of Congress from both parties, demanded transparency in the review of cannabis schedule.
Rep. Barbara Lee said that the Biden Administration must act on federal cannabis scheduling “now”, ahead of the upcoming elections.
HHS will then send a recommendation for scheduling to the Drug Enforcement Administration , which is responsible for making the final decision. The scientific findings of the health agency are binding. However, DEA can theoretically ignore any recommendation that results from it.
NCAA panel recommends removing marijuana from the list of banned substances for college athletes
The post Biden Promotes Marijuana pardons and scheduling review in Juneteenth Proclamation first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
