US Cannabis Stores Targeted In Protests

Several cannabis dispensaries in the US have been broken into and looted, after being targeted across the US. Dispensaries have been the target of protest-related violence, which is in response to the murder of George Floyd. The 46-year-old father was brutally killed last week by Minneapolis police officers while he was handcuffed and forcefully restrained. Just hours ago, The New York Times revealed that a private autopsy performed on Floyd’s body found that he died as a result of asphyxia. These findings were confirmed by the Hennepin County Medical examiner, who have concluded that the death was a homicide. As of May 3rd, over 43 cannabis dispensaries have been destroyed, with most destruction centred around San Francisco, Chicago, and Los Angeles. As a result of the destruction, all Chicago dispensaries have closed indefinitely. In San Francisco, the following cannabis stores have been broken into and ransacked:

• Mission Cannabis Club
• BASA Collective
• Urbana
• California St. Cannabis Company
• Blunts + Moore
• Moe Greens
• Connected Cannabis
• The Apothecarium
• Dutchman’s Flat
• The Green Cross
• Grass Roots
• Dr. Greenthumb’s
• Medithrive

However, the looting in Los Angeles has targeted fewer cannabis stores, as only Cookies Melrose, LA Kush, MedMen, Sweet Flower and Sherbinskis have been looted.  At this point in time, it’s unclear whether insurance companies will cover damage from looting. Despite the looting, several members of the American cannabis community have come out in support of the protest movement. This includes Berner - the owner of Cookies Melrose. Berner (whose real name is Gilbert Milam Jr) is a US rapper who owns the several other dispensaries under the ‘Cookies’ name. When talking about the looting, he had this to say on Instagram:

How can I worry about a store when there’s so much happening in the world right now? ...we can rebuild our store but you can’t bring someone back to life.

Debby Goldsberry, the owner of Magnolia Wellness in Oakland was also quick to come out in support of the protests, stating that:

Our shop can be rebuilt.

However, for patients who need medical marijuana, the destruction of cannabis dispensaries may lead to a shortage of medical marijuana medications. While dispensaries in some US states retail to the public, a large percentage of their customer base require medical marijuana for the treatment of a range of illnesses, including Epilepsy, PTSD and Chemotherapy related sicknesses.