Illinois becomes 11th state to allow recreational marijuana

[frazzled]

4. And the first (I think) to legislatively address minority issues comprehensively

The marketplace portion of the Illinois law addresses what critics have said is the decadeslong war on drugs’s disproportionate impact on communities of color.

In addition to providing criminal-record scrubbing for past low-level offenders, the law gives preference to would-be marijuana vendors in areas of high poverty and with records of large numbers of convictions. And portions tax proceeds must be reinvested in impoverished communities.

Our governor is really getting down in the weeds (pun intended) with progressive legislation. This is not just about legalizing pot: it is an attempt to rebalance social inequities.