Flickr.com
Eight in ten Americans agree: It’s time to end the federal criminalization of marijuana.
Keeping marijuana illegal nationwide creates an incredible level of unequal enforcement. So while cannabis remains fully criminalized in just three states, an American is put into handcuffs for a marijuana offense every 90 seconds anyway.
In the last two decades, 15.7 million people have been arrested for nonviolent marijuana offenses, and 40,000 prisoners are sitting behind bars right now for cannabis crimes. Many are even incarcerated in states like California and Colorado where the crime for which they were convicted is actually legal statewide.
The prohibition of marijuana disproportionately affects people of color, even though Americans of all races use marijuana at equal rates.
Black Americans are nearly four times as likely to be arrested as white people for marijuana. And when people of color are arrested, their sentences are worse.
Black men receive 13.1% longer sentences than white men, and Latinos are 6.5 times more likely to receive a federal sentence than non-Hispanic whites…
We’re wasting $47 billion each year on the war on drugs, much of which is spent on enforcing an outdated, draconian set of Federal marijuana laws. Let’s put an end to this inconsistent, widely unpopular unequal enforcement.
Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action
Excerpt from mail from Inequality Media Civic Action
Eideard 
“President Biden on Thursday announced that he is pardoning all prior federal offenses of simple marijuana possession and encouraged state governors to do the same for state offenses. He also directed federal officials to review how marijuana is classified under the Controlled Substances Act.
“There are thousands of people who have prior federal convictions for marijuana possession, who may be denied employment, housing, or educational opportunities as a result,” Biden said in a statement. “My action will help relieve the collateral consequences arising from these convictions.”
The blazing announcement means that all prior charges, convictions, and not-yet-prosecuted offenses will be pardoned. The Justice Department will set up an administrative process for those affected to obtain a certificate of pardon.”
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2022/10/biden-pardons-all-federal-simple-marijuana-possession-offenses/