As a New York City teenager, 50-year old Roland Conner found himself harshly punished for minor offenses related to marijuana.
A 1991 arrest resulted in a months-long incarceration, as America’s flawed “war on drugs” had an unfairly disproportionate impact on Black and brown youth.
Since that period in his life, native New Yorker Conner has gone on to operate a property management business and manage a transitional housing facility in the Bronx borough.
His next horizon? Operating one of New York state’s newly licensed dispensaries for recreational cannabis, at a store he’s calling Smacked! in the upscale Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan.
Despite hundreds of unauthorized dispensaries sprouting all over the city, Smacked! is only the second legal dispensary to open in the state and the first one operated by someone formerly incarcerated on marijuana-related charges.
Conner is running the pop-up dispensary with his wife and son, and he soon plans to move into a more permanent space.
“I am so excited to become a part of history as the first individual to open a legal cannabis dispensary in New York City. Given my experience with cannabis, I never could have imagined that I would be opening a store like this,” Conner said in a statement reported by NBC News.
Conner is among the first of more than 900 applicants to receive a dispensary license, thanks to a New York initiative.
The state has been leading the charge in the US to provide some people formerly incarcerated in relation to cannabis with the opportunity to procure business licenses as priority applicants, as a way to help address past convictions in a heavy-handed system that was biased against minorities.
Conner and others deemed “social equity” applicants by the state are also receiving aid from a $200m public-private fund meant to help redress the impacts of the war on drugs, especially in communities of color.
Outside Smacked! on Wednesday, security personnel greeted customers curiously approaching the nondescript store, standing out only by its frosted windows and a sticker signifying its legal dispensary status.
Inside, smiling staff in store uniforms greeted eager customers, offering professional knowledge about various marijuana products and accessories.
The large space was adorned with blue balloons, and glass shelves were stocked with glass jars of cannabis flowers.
On only its second day, many customers said they specifically visited Smacked! to support Conner and the initiative.
Julio Meza-Juarez, 26, said he heard about Smacked! on the news and stopped by the dispensary after a nearby doctor’s appointment was cancelled.
“I support this 100%,” he said of New York state’s initiative.
Meza-Juarez, who works as an art handler but has been recovering from a shoulder injury, added that the initiative could help rectify past racial injustice related to marijuana prosecution.
“We just need to see more people of color in positions like these,” said Meza-Juarez, “[especially as] this is a new market that’s bound to just skyrocket.”
In New York City, Black and Latino people make up the majority of marijuana-related convictions, accounting for 95% of arrests and 96% of convictions in 2020, according to the Legal Aid Society, despite white people consuming at similar rates.
Francis Hall, 57, was involved in the marijuana business himself and outside Smacked! on Wednesday he told the Guardian he was happy to see Conner receive a chance to participate in the industry.
“It’s unfortunate that this man did become incarcerated, but it is very nice to see some justice being served today,” said Hall, an actor and activist.
Housing Works Cannabis Companywas the first legal dispensary to open in New York state. The dispensary opened in late December a few blocks away and all proceeds from the business go to the Housing Works non-profit that fights HIV and homelessness.
Matthew Rohrer, a 52-year-old university teacher and poet, stopped by Smacked! while commuting to work, and said he was pleased to see his purchase used to promote greater equity and support New York City.
“I honestly don’t mind paying a little more to know the taxes are going back to my city, knowing that Housing Works and someone like [Conner] is making the profits,” he said.
Marijuana has been largely decriminalized in New York City since 2019. In 2021, state lawmakers approved adult recreational cannabis use, paving the way for legal sale.
The rollout of dispensaries has been an uneasy one. Unlicensed dispensaries have multiplied throughout the city, from folding tables in popular parks to fully fledged storefronts, causing a good deal of confusion.
Licensed marijuana providers have also had difficulty finding landlords willing to rent to them, according to the New York Times.
New York city officials have said that they are actively addressing the estimated 1,400 unlicensed dispensaries, as official outlets open at a trickle.