CashColorCannabis: This is CashColorCannabis. Today, we’re outside of LHHD studios. We’re actually at my office in my house and we’re conducting an interview with Arlene Pitterson, Director of Partnerships and education at Cannaclusive, the leading organization created to facilitate inclusion for both business owners and consumers in the cannabis industry. And we get a chance to talk to you today about Cannaclusive’s new partnership with one of the largest privately-held multi-state cannabis operators in the United States, Parallel, and Together, Cannaclusive and Parallel aim to create a more inclusive, educated, and collaborative cannabis sector. The partnership will focus on amplifying the voices and insights of Cannaclusive’s founders through media channels and spearheading bi-monthly social equity programming. So without further ado, I’d like to introduce Arlene, Arlene. How are you doing this afternoon? I’m great. Thank you. How are you? I’m doing great myself.
I’m glad to have you on the call today. So yeah, let us see if we can get into this discussion about Cannaclusive and Parallel. First, explain to us your background and how you found yourself part of Cannaclusive.
Arlene Pitterson: Sure. My background is very varied. I have a marketing degree from Drexel University and I have a graduate degree in International Labor Relations from Cornell. With my marketing degree, I went into advertising and marketing in the consumer packaged goods world. So I was that person. I had been working for myself for a little bit, and about three years ago, the CEO of Cannaclusive came to me and said “Hey, we’d love for you to come in and help us on the business side when it comes to cannabis.” And of course, I was more than happy to help. As far as the drug wars, I have not necessarily been personally affected. But I do have family members who have and I felt it was an awesome opportunity to be in the fight. From there, we’ve grown and I have been helping the organization partner with various organizations, like the multi-state cannabis operator, Parallel. For us that makes sense, because Cannaclusive is about educating, advocating and promoting black and brown people in the cannabis industry period. That is our focus. That is what we do. We don’t vary from that. And we’ve had businesses come to us because of that.
CashColorCannabis: Well, the discussion today is about the partnership between Cannaclusive and Parallel. So what prompted Cannaclusive to want to work with Parallel?
Arlene Pitterson: Really, it was the opportunity that it presented in being able to be a part of an organization who is such a dynamic leader in the Cannabis industry. At Cannaclusive, we’re all about helping affect change from the inside. And Parallel came to us saying, Hey, we’d really love to collaborate with you. We know that we need to look outside of what we’ve currently been doing, and we need your help. We love to discuss ways that we can really make some change. So that’s how the partnership started.
CashColorCannabis: And so what are some of the goals of the partnership between Cannaclusive and Parallel?
Arlene Pitterson:To help diversify employees at Parallel, but really, also give a chance for people to know the story of what Parallel is doing. Because there’s a lot of great things they have been doing, but unfortunately, you don’t get a chance to hear it. Currently, Parallel supports social equity through partnerships and collaborations with CultivaTED and Minority Cannabis Business Association. It’s also about helping Parallel connect with resources and opportunities that simply just aren’t on their radar. That’s where we as Cannaclusive come in. We have been working for a couple months now and speaking both internally and externally on how it’s not just about creating a profit, it’s also about being a good corporate citizen. We have been putting together the framework to understand how we can make that really shine and not just do it in a silo, because as we know these are the type of things that can really push the needle in truly diversifying the cannabis industry.
CashColorCannabis: I agree with you. Sincerity is very important. And I know pushing the conversations around the topic of diversity is important, especially when it comes to cannabis. How does Cannaclusive and Parallel plan to tackle that kind of conversation?
Arlene Pitterson: The one thing we have to be clear on is that this conversation is not a monolith. Right? There are so many varied ways to affect the change right now with the way that we ingest and disseminate information. The injustices that were highlighted over the summer with George Floyd and Breyonna Taylor have translated even more so into cannabis because it’s now something tangible. It’s now something like oh wait, this is what people keep saying has been happening and now we see it. So, again, Parallel has been part of that conversation with us in how they can really help. And one of the things Cannaclusive prides itself on is that we don’t just partner with anyone. We look for partners that are really doing the work and are not afraid to get their hands dirty.They also have to be willing to take constructive criticism. It’s no longer about a call out, which is part of what we need to do, but it’s also calling in. And we are looking forward to continuing this partnership to really make sure that the call within the industry is actually working for everybody.
CashColorCannabis: No, no, I totally agree. One of the things that’s clear, and also evident when it comes to cannabis is the lack of black faces and leadership positions. In this collaboration with Parallel, is that something else that you’re going to try to tackle as far as the topic in the industry? Making sure that we do see more black faces, men and women in executive positions and leadership positions?
Arlene Pitterson: Yes, that is definitely something that has been a discussion. And in general, this can go even broader into general corporate america. Right now the system, unfortunately, works based on “Who do you know?” And when all you know, is a certain bubble, that’s what leads to a lack of diversity. It’s like you know there are other people outside of this bubble, right? This same mentality has translated into cannabis and Parallel is doing some of that work with us to fix that. I also want to make it clear that they’ve actually done some work before we came into the, into the picture. What we’re doing is kind of enhancing and fine tuning and giving strategic council on different situations and opportunities that make sense for them as an organization. At Cannaclusive our main goal is to improve the overall advancement of black and brown people in the cannabis space. Which includes working with corporate companies and getting people in management and leadership positions.
CashColorCannabis: Okay, one thing I like about Cannaclusive is when it comes to social media, the content that you create is really engaging and gets to the point very quickly. One thing that really stood out to me was that you’ll be leading bi-monthly social equity programming that highlights inclusive organizations. I’d love to hear more about that and what that content would look like. I assume you’ll be creating this alongside Parallel? Can you tell me more about this?
Arlene Pitterson: We’re still working through this and this will be more of a 2021 conversation. However, Parallel and Cannaclusive aim to increase national awareness and conversations around diversity and inclusion and expand the existing network of inclusive organizations for future industry collaborations. What we’re looking for it to do is really bring people and organizations to the cannabis space who aren’t getting seen. A lot of why we built the following that we have is because we feature lesser known businesses. Some of them are pretty visible thanks to their PR and marketing, but some of these smaller ones who are doing just as great work, Cannaclusive is bringing that to the forefront and we’re excited to partner with Parallel to help us further publicize the work, but it’s all about aligning to what makes sense.
Additionally, college students who want to go into the cannabis industry, are wondering how to do that. Well, Cannaclusive has partnerships with organizations and we can help with that. Part of what we’ve done in the past and what we continue to do is feature and uplift. So educating people about that is exactly what we’re looking to do
CashColorCannabis: So since most of this conversation will be taking place in 2021 as we’re looking down the road, what would you want to see from the partnership, let’s say next year at this time? Would it be seeing more black faces and executive positions? More mainstream companies acknowledging diversity issues, and being more proactive, when it comes to correcting them?
Arlene Pitterson: We want it to be authentic. So we want to bring in black and brown faces that make sense to the company, not just to put somebody up as a token for quota purposes — which we unfortunately see happen a lot. I also look forward to us being able to bring resources to smaller businesses and featuring smaller businesses. Specifically with Parallel, there’s some great opportunities and stories just with the employees of how they are out here in the community helping and how they’re doing certain things on their own. And they need to be highlighted as well, and why they have the passion for cannabis and why they’re in the industry. We will continue to do the policy work we’ve been doing and planning Diversity, Equity & Inclusion workshops as well. So it’s really about featuring all of those things, which will allow for a very cohesive conversation. Because there’s a need, and that need is not going to stop. So as we continue, I look for this time next year for there to be more black and brown hires as well as diverse collaborations that make sense.
CashColorCannabis: Great. And lastly, look, can we speak a little bit about Cannaclusive. Aside from Parallel, what are some of the things that we should be looking forward to we can expect from Cannaclusive in 2021?
Arlene Pitterson: The things that we’re working towards is continuing to really feature black and brown businesses, we have the accountability list. So that is also something that we’re looking to grow. The accountability list has been a great wake up call to the industry. And we have some exciting partnerships that have grown because of that. But we’re also looking for more people. This is the reason why the list has as popular as it is, is because it’s a community effort. So we actually are looking for people to help with the creation and the maintenance of the accountability list. And we actually take time to go through these lists. It’s not just, putting your name up. We research everything. We want to make sure that these kinds of resources grow and continue to help. Also, policy work right now is huge for us. New Jersey is definitely a conversation that’s very interesting right now, and that’s the best and most politically correct way I can say that.
We also certainly want to prioritize making sure that equity happens and that people’s records are getting expunged. These are things that are hugely important to the growth of the industry in general. This is not just a feel good initiative, because oh, this is cute. You’re literally taking away from a legacy market who has the experience, who has the know-how, because of antiquated laws that actually never made sense in the first place. It’s time to get rid of those laws and figure out how we can all work together so that way now you have people who are employed within an industry that they were already in.You never know, the next big innovator could be somebody who might be caught up in paperwork with drug laws. They may be the very one who’s going to create that strain that’s really going to helpADHD and conditions like that. That’s the kind of forward thinking we’re looking for, and pushing governments to make sure that they do. So let’s see how much progress we can make in 2021.
For legalization nationwide to actually happen, that is going to be something very interesting and we’re looking forward to the administration that’s coming in, and seeing how they will actually help benefit people of color.
CashColorCannabis: Yes. Arlene has been great talking to you. today. I’m a real fan of Cannaclusive. I pray for success with the new partnership with Parallel. Before we fade out let people know how they can find more information about Cannaclusive if they want to learn more about the group.
Arlene Pitterson: You can visit our website www.cannaclusive.com, Follow us at @Cannaclusive on Instagram and @BeCannaclusive on Twitter. We also have a Facebook page so those are actually the easiest ways to get in contact with us. Our Instagram has over 40,000 followers. We have a mailing list where we send out particular information. We’re also apart of a coalition that we created called “Cannabis for Black Lives” where we’ve just had several cannabis companies come to us and say, “We want to help and we’re tired of trying to do it ourselves, we want to do something.” So that is also something that we are focusing on in 2021. We’re currently in a fundraising mode right now for another organization. And we are focusing on a different organization every six to eight weeks to raise money for and for them to go ahead and put the resources to what they know they need either locally or nationally.
CashColorCannabis: Awesome. You guys are doing amazing work again. I hope you have great success with Parallel next year. And thank you very much for speaking with us today. Arlene, thank you so much. Appreciate it. No problem. Thank you very much and that’s CashColorCannabis, a high level of conversation.
